Make Over Monday - week of 11-28-2011

This week Andrea found another great card for us to make over. I used Andrea's card as inspiration and kept with her style - rounding two corners for each layer. See her card and her inspirational card on her site here.

Here's my card:

I used a light brown craft style cardstock from Recollections, Old Olive SU card stock, and Holly Jolly papers from The Paper Studio. The sentiment is from a Christmas crafts collection from Hobby Lobby and is stamped in Soft Suede SU classic ink. I used Recollections flat back pearls instead of the brad that Andrea used.

Overall, I really like my card. I did have a tough time getting the top double layer to stick to the polka dotted middle layer because of the glitter on the polka dots...sticky strip for the win. Can't wait to see what card she finds for us next week.

Make Over Monday - week of 11-21-2011

Another Make Over Monday challenge over at Andrea Walford's site...this one I am really loving! Thinking of making a couple more of the same style to send to friends and relatives this season. Hope you enjoy it too!

Card front

Inside of Card 

I used papers from The Paper Studio's Magic of the Season collection, Real Red classic ink pad and Cherry Cobbler marker from Stampin' Up, stamps from Stampabilities and the dollar bin at Michael's, versamark ink pad and stampendous white and silver embossing powders.

Make Over Monday - week of 11-14-2011

I haven't been around much lately.  Life has been hectic...I couldn't even begin to go into it all. I did manage to find a moment to create this card for Andrea Walford's  Make Over Monday challenge #3.  This is my second time participating. I hope you enjoy my card.

I used a piece of scrap card stock from some packaging as the card base, real red card stock scraps from Stampin Up, and Recollections pearls, and ribbon and white card stock from Walmart.The Chatterbox image is from The Graphics Fairy and printed using my canon printer.The stamp is from a Christmas Craft collection I bought at Hobby Lobby a while back and the red gem stones are just some cell phone bling. All of the items were items I already had from within my stash.

Wine Bottle Tag - Makeover Monday Challenge

I decided to participate in Andrea Walford's 1st Makeover Monday Challenge. Here's what I came up with:

I didn't have an embossing folder so I used #114512 Big Shot Plates Texturz Backgrounds #1 - the flower background texture. I highlighted the raised dots with a white gel pen and accented the sentiment and top of the tag with clear rhinestones.  I only have two border punches - a heart one and a scallop border punch. I used the scallop border punch on the Old Olive layer and then used a Nestabilities Label Eight die to cut the bottom edge of the Real Red layer. The sentiment was cut using a Nestabilities Label Four die. The stamp is from Hobby Lobby's Christmas Crafts collection - Holiday Words Stamps Set CMAS1071 and stamped in Real Red SU classic ink.

If anyone knows how to get a crisper image with the texture plates, please share!

My First Ever Stampin' Up Stamps!

I got a package in the mail today! I got my first ever Stampin' Up stamps...exciting huh! I ordered Snow Swirled #111690 and Dasher #116816 stamp sets in preparation for Christmas card making and a workshop! Snow Swirled came with 6 lovely stamps and Dasher is an "A la Carte" stamp. Below are the images in both sets...I can hardly wait to play with them!

Snow Swirled Set

Dasher - A la carte stamp

Aren't they just great! If you like these stamps and want to order them, let me know and I can get you in touch with my SU demo, Brenda.

Putting the stamps on the wood blocks wasn't difficult either. The stamps come pre-cut with adhesive already on the back. Just snap them out of the rubber square, peel the backing off, slap it right on the wood block and add the clear image to the back side. Your all ready to start stampin!  Woohoo! Hope you all have a wonderful day! I'm off to do some stampin! Laterz!

"Smell My Feet " Card

My August Stampin' Up order included designer paper, thanks to their great buy 3 get 1 deal going through the month of August. If you haven't gotten any yet, stop by Brenda Dean's Stampin Blog and shop her store to get this great deal. It's easy peasy - just click on her Shop Now link and add your favorite designer papers to your shopping cart. I was so excited to order that I completely forgot to grab a package of "Frightful Sight" Halloween designer paper.So for my first halloween card, I had to resort to creating my own, which was fun to say the least.

My first card was inspired by a recent (and ongoing) blog post created by Angie Kennedy Juda. She is hosting a "12 Weeks of Halloween" campaign! She includes downloadable instructions and amazing videos for her Halloween projects - that got me inspired to create a few cards of my own. You should check out her first two projects...they are AMAZING! I can hardly wait for next week's installment! Without further ado...here is my "Smell My Feet" card.

Supply List: Old Olive card stock, White card stock, Black card stock, Old Olive stamp pad and marker, black stamp pad, Recollections Halloween clear acrylic stamps, Bubbles stamp from a Cling Birthday stamp set.

Tools List: Spellbinders Nestabilities Classic Scalloped Circles Large (2nd from smallest) die, Tombow adhesive (or your favorite), X-acto Wiggly Edge Scissors, Sizzix Big Kick, and a pair of fine tipped paper scissors.

Card Stock Cutting Instructions:

Black - (A) 2 7/8 x 2 5/8;  (B) 5 1/4 x 4; (C) 1 1/2 x 5; (D) 2 1/2 x 2 1/2; (E) 1/2 x 2 7/8

Old Olive - (Base) 5 1/2 x 8 1/2, scored at 4 1/4 on the long side; (F) 2 3/4 x 2 1/2; (G) 1 1/4 x 5

White - (H) 2 1/2 x 2 1/2 need 2 of these; (I) 5 x 3 3/4

Stamping:  Begin by stamping the bubble stamp in Old Olive ink randomly on pieces F and G  and on the front of the base card. Next, using black ink, stamp the "Smell My Feet" stamp in the center of both pieces of card stock H.  Color the socks in with the Old Olive marker on both.

More Cutting: Cut around one of the "Smell My Feet" images to carefully make a perfect circle with a diameter of approx. 1 7/8.  Carefully snip the legs from the second "Smell My Feet" image, discarding the remaining. Using your Big Kick and the scalloped circle die, cut a black scalloped circle from card stock D.

Trim card stock E with the wiggly edged scissors.

Outside of Card: Begin by adhering the perfect circle "Smell My Feet" H image to the black scalloped circle. Then adhere F to A, and adhere wiggle edged E strip to the center of the FA stack (long ways).  Next adhere the scalloped circle stack to the center of the FAE stack as shown on my card. Adhere that stack to the center of the card base. Using a scrap piece of card stock to mask the center stack and black ink, stamp bat images so that they appear to be coming out from behind the center stack.

Inside of Card: Begin by adhering I to B and G to C making 2 separate stacks. Then adhere those together, putting the GC stack near the bottom of the IB stack. Adhere the individual feet that you snipped out on that final stack then adhere the entire stack to the inside of the base card.

Thanks For Blessing My Life With You - A Challenge Entry Card

Here is my entry for the Clean and Simple Sunday Challenge over at Brenda Dean's blog. I used Brenda's sketch idea to create an anniversary card for my husband. On August 30, we will celebrate our 3rd wedding anniversary. Believe it or not...I love him more and more every day...who says the honey moon has to end! Ours certainly hasn't!

Color Combination: Old Olive; Chocolate Chip, and Bashful Blue
Sentiment created in Photoshop using English and Gourdie Cursive fonts from DaFont.com

I created this card using Old Olive and Chocolate Chip card stock from Stampin' Up and Designer paper from a huge pad from Recollections. The white cardstock is from Walmart. The image on the front is from a stampendous stamp set that I scanned and colored in photoshop. I also created a lined envelope using white copier paper and left over matching DP. Ribbon is from my stash, not sure on brand.

Saturday Spotlight - Cards I Made Recently

Here are a couple of cards I made for family recently...

This first card I created for my niece's baby shower. She is having a boy and I can hardly wait to meet the little guy. He is due in September - the shower is today, which is why I waited to post this until after the shower. This card was made using Stampin Up card stock - Tempting Turquoise and Chocolate Chip as well as white cardstock from Wal-Mart. Inks from SU - Tempting Turquoise, Chocolate Chip and Old Olive. The stamp set is from a wooden stamp from the dollar bin at Michaels and the Bunny stamp on the front is from a Stampendous clear acrylic stamp set. Green ribbon is some I had in my collection, from Wal-Mart.

 

This next card is a "Thinking of You on your Birthday" card made specifically for my sister. Her birthday was Friday, July 29th. I gave her the card at the baby shower today! She collects owls and I happened to have a perfectly wonderful owl stamp. The stamp set used on the front is an I-Cling from the dollar bin. The card is made with Wal-Mart white card stock and SU Razzleberry card stock and ink. The designer paper is from the Recollections Fashionably Chic paper pad purchased from Michaels. I also use Stampendous Kaleidoscope Embossing Powder on the owls eyes, nose, and flowers. The sentiment on the inside of the card (not shown - "on your Birthday") is from various stamp sets that I own. I also used a cell phone bling jewel on the small flower next to the "Thinking of You" sentiment on the front of the card. Ribbon is bits and scraps from my collection.

Hope you like my cards. You will have to wait for their reaction until after I get back from the shower. For now, I am certain they will love them! I am in the process of switching all my supplies to Stampin Up. If you have any tips on the best way to build a SU collection on a limited budget, feel free to pass the info. I am currently spending about $30-50 per month getting papers and inks. I love that the papers and inks are completely coordinated - which makes card making/stamping so much more fun! Hope you enjoy my cards!

In addition to the cards, I decided to share the baby shower diaper cake I made as a present for my niece. I went with a frog theme - sure wish I had found a decent frog stamp for the card! Anyway, hope you enjoy!

Monday Marketplace - 03272011

Every Monday Shack Scraps will present some kind of paper crafting deal on the Monday Marketplace post.

If you haven't visited Michael's website - you must do so! They are hosting a customer appreciation week and giving all a 25% discount on top of sale prices. Get a printable coupon to use this week only! Check it out!

Video of the Week - March 27, 2011

Every Sunday, Shack Scraps will present a video of the week. It may or may not be related to paper crafting - but most likely it will be! This week I found an awesome video for  newbie paper crafters like myself. Most of us don't have a ton of money to spend to put together an entire crafting room like many of the veteran crafters have done over time. This video provides a technique that will help you out as you get started...

Faux Letterpress with Solid Images - published by Kim Crawford!

Thank you Kim! I am certain that everyone who views your video will be just as excited as I was.

Now, does anyone know what I can use as a pad when doing this technique? I have my Big Shot but no cushie pad as is shown and my funds are limited. The first commenter (within the USA) with the most useful household item (of which I already own) to use as an embossing pad in my Big Shot will get a Shack Scraps dozen of hand made flower embellishments. Get those comments goin!

Here is a sample of the flowers I have already made.

Find more photos like this on Paper Craft Planet

Thanks for stopping by!

Candy Corner - March 27, 2011

Every Sunday, Shack Scraps will be hosting a "Candy Corner" post where fellow paper crafters/ bloggers can list their blog candies/ giveaways. In turn, Shack Scraps will also feature blog candy either our own delicious candy scraps or some juicy candy I happen to find.

This week’s featured candy is from CREATE:blog!

They are giving away the “Dear Lizzy” Kit which includes:

• (20) 12” x 12” papers
• (100) Thicker letter stickers
• (34) phrase stickers
• (4) flair badges
• (24) patterned chipboard shapes
• (1) 12” x 12” cloth post bound album
• (10) page protectors

Hop on over to CREATE:blog and post your comment to be entered to win - comments must be posted by Friday, March 31.

Now it's your turn, leave your blog candy/giveaway links below so everyone can have a chance at your goodies! Please be sure to link directly to the page with the giveaway and not your home page.



Thanks for participating!

Thursday's Thoughts - Fonts and the Law

I just had to share this article I received in my email yesterday. It comes from the CrowdSpring blog and it's entitled The Law on Fonts and Typefaces: Frequently Asked Questions written by Ross.

In our paper crafting world, many of us create our own sentiments using fonts right off our computer and probably some fonts found from free font sites such as DaFont.com and others. I found this article to be particularly helpful to me and thought you might as well. Here is a quick excerpt from the beginning of the article:

The right typeface is often the key to a great logo, graphic or web design. But there’s much confusion and misinformation about typefaces, fonts and the law.


Many people do not understand the law governing the use of typefaces and fonts. Others incorrectly assume that they can freely use any typeface or font for any project.

When you purchase a commercial font, you are purchasing a license to use the font software. Your rights and obligations are defined in the End User License Agreement (EULA). Those agreements will vary among fonts and among font makers – so read them very carefully to understand what you can and cannot do with the fonts you’re licensing. For example, some agreements will restrict the number of computers on which you can install a font.

 Be sure to visit  The Law on Fonts and Typefaces: Frequently Asked Questions to finish reading the entire article. It's very informative and has some great question and answers at the end of the article. Go learn something! :)

Workshop Wednesday - Watercolor Backgrounds

I'd like to introduce you to Workshop Wednesday! My plan for Workshop Wednesday is to share my learning experiences with you - I do hope you will follow along and work on some of these cards with me. So lets get started!

I am using my CAS lessons from Paper Craft Planet as a starting point for Workshop Wednesday. I joined PCP in January and so far I have worked my way up to lesson 6 - Watercolor Backgrounds. Here is a slide show of a few cards already in the CAS Lesson 6 Photo Gallery.

Find more photos like this on Paper Craft Planet

I took the liberty of finding an excellent video tutorial by Andrea Walford on the watercolor background wash using Stampin' Up's reinkers. I don't have any re-inkers just yet, but I do have a wonderful set of watercolor paints left over from my college years..so I used those instead.

Here is my card:

What I learned:

• I found that when using watercolor paper, and doing the wash method as the video showed, you need to use the back (or smooth ) side of the paper. It washes nicely and when you are stamping watercolor paper, the smooth side will hold the ink better than the rough side.
• I also learned that when embossing on watercolor paper, use the smooth side as the rough side soaks up the ink much faster preventing your embossing powders from sticking as well.

Tool Tip Tuesday - Homemade Embossing Buddy

Can't find your embossing buddy, or too cheap to buy one? Make your own! Just take an old tube sock and cut it about 3 to 4 inches up. Fill it with cornstarch and tie or sew the end shut.

 

In a pinch, you have a perfectly good embossing buddy that works wonderfully! I store mine in my empty embossing powder bowl. I also rub it around that same bowl before I tap any excess embossing powder in it - the powder pours back into its container without sticking to the bowl! 

Tapping it lightly on the paper, the cornstarch keeps all the embossing powder off your card surface except exactly where you want it. 

See:

Thanks for reading!

Monday Marketplace

Every Monday Shack Scraps will present some kind of paper crafting deal on the Monday Marketplace post.

In my town, we have a Michaels, Hobby Lobby, and Joann's Fabric stores. This week, I found the best deal is at Hobby Lobby. If your looking to build your paper crafting tools - go visit Hobby Lobby for great prices on paper crafting items.

While your at it, visit the Hobby Lobby website and get your printable coupon - this week they are selling Packaged Craft Feathers for 50% off with the coupon. Imagine what could you make with those...

Shack Scraps Video of the Week!

Every Sunday, Shack Scraps will present a video of the week. It may or may not be related to paper crafting - but most likely it will be!  This week, I have chosen a flower tutorial video from TimCoffeyArt. Tim uses security envelopes to make a variation of the plastic bag flower. I just love this type of flower so much that I made 3 just last night. Without further ado - Shack Scraps presents "Flower Variations - Episode 8" by TimCoffeyArt! - Enjoy!

 

Watch how Tim makes his flower and then visit Tim's page to watch Plastic Bag Flower - Episode 7, now try your hand at making the flower you like the best. Here's one of the three that I made:

Share your flower creations with us! Create your own blog post or link up your flower image with Shack Scraps below.

Candy Corner

Every Sunday, Shack Scraps will be hosting a "Candy Corner" post where fellow paper crafters/bloggers can list their blog candies/giveaways. I decided to start this first one off with a fantastic giveaway at one of my very favorite blogs.

Orgjunkie.com is giving away a Silhouette SD! Can you believe that??? I can think of hundreds of ways to use this awesome machine! I certainly signed up - now you can too! While your there, be sure to check out Laura's Menu Plan Monday post. She has started a trend making life easier for many moms everywhere. If your not into planning menus but love cooking you can certainly find great recipes just from visiting all the link-ups she has for each and every MPM!

Now it's your turn, leave your blog candy/giveaway links below so everyone can have a chance at your goodies! Please be sure to link directly to the page with the giveaway and not your home page.

Clean & Simple Sunday Challenge

Hi all! I decided to try my hand at the Clean & Simple Sunday challenge over at Stamping with Brenda. I would love to win a month of "The Paper Society" club before I decide to join Stampin Up. It would be cool to get to know Brenda better, especially if I choose to sign up under her. Without further ado...here is my first card for the challenge, I will be posting another since we can do up to 2.

Details on supplies include:

Paper

• White Card Stock from Georgia-Pacific
• Green Card Stock from Recollections
• Printed Paper is from Me & My Big Ideas and KI Memories Classic Prints

Clear stamp from "All Things Grow" (I think it is a set from Stampendous)

Inks include:

• Michaels $1 No-Name Ink Spot in green for edging
• Sentiment stamped using Rose Art green marker ink

Versa Mark ink pad for embossing the sentiment with Stampendous Deep Impressions Embossing Powder in Transparent

Adhesives used include Scotch ATG

Hope you enjoyed my first post to Shack Scraps and my card. In case your interested, this was only the 2nd time I have ever embossed anything and I still have tons more techniques and things to learn.