Hey Y'all! Man, it has been quite a week for me. I wasn't feeling well last Monday, and by Tuesday I was in the Emergency Room! Yikes. Everything is OK. I had severe sinusitis and dehydration. So they kept me for almost 6 hours and I was given fluids and an antibiotic, etc. I have just been trying to get a lot of rest since then. Needless to say, I have not been stamping this week. I am still getting tired easily and I am getting sinus headaches daily. I am afraid that because of this, I don't have anything new to share today. :(
But, I have updated the Deal of the Week for you. Check out the super cute rhinestone brads on sale this week!
Also, I am awaiting a box of new goodies! They should be here sometime today. I hope that I'll feel better later this week and will be able to play with the new stuff. Have I mentioned how much I love the new catalog?? I ordered several new DSPs, a couple of stamp sets, and some new ribbon. I can't wait!! I hope that I'll be back by the weekend with new fun stuff to share so please check back with me then.
Sorry to type and run, but I have worn myself out just with this short time on the computer and I need to take another break. I hope y'all have a Stamptacular Day!
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Monday, July 6, 2009
Don't miss the Deal of the Week!
Just wanted to remind you of the Deal of the Week promotion from Stampin' Up! You can view each week's deal over there ======> at the top of the right hand column. Click on the link to visit my website where you can read more information on the promotion, as well as see the other promotions for this month. You can also purchase the DOTW (Deal of the Week) while you are there. Simply click the shop now button at the top right of my website. The doctor's bag is so adorable! If you have the Big Shot, this bag is a great accessory. If you go to crops or scrapbooking events, or even just go to a friend's house to stamp or scrap, this bag is perfect for you. It holds the Big Shot and several dies in style! Just pack and go!
After I worked on the Christmas Tag Box the other day, I got to thinking about Christmas. It is my favorite holiday of the year. I start decorating my house really early. Maybe not July early, but pretty early. (Much to the chagrin of my DH and kiddos.) Hey, if it were up to me, I'd probably leave the decorations up all year! One time I even thought about working in a Christmas Shoppe just so I could be surrounded by all the fun goodies all the time!! Anyway, since I can't start getting out the decorations yet, I decided to break out my other Christmas stamp sets instead. I had one set(OK, OK, more than one. I horde them. There I said it.) that hadn't seen any ink yet. It's called "Big on Christmas" and has 3 stamps. So, I showed the set some love and inked it up! I made three fairly simple cards, one with each of the images. My thought was that maybe these cards could be used at a workshop. Even newer stampers could complete all three cards in one evening. I used the same color scheme for all three. This also helps keep things simple for beginning stampers, but is also a nice cohesive look for all stampers. I used Creamy Caramel, Always Artichoke, Real Red, Ballet Blue and Whisper White. I used 5/8" Red Grosgrain Ribbon for all of them. For the background, I used the coordinating Christmas Chatter Wheel. I didn't have ink cartridges for all of the colors I wanted, so I simply rolled the wheel onto the ink pad and inked up the wheel that way. That works just fine when you have a short ways to go. I inked, rolled, inked and rolled for each background ~ there are two lines of the wheel on each one.
For the snowman, I stamped the image a second time, cut out just the snowman and colored him in using an aqua painter. He has a Going Grey hat, Ballet Blue hat band, Pumpkin Pie nose, and Artichoke and Red holly. I used a pop dot to pop the image up. I used a 2 way glue pen to add glitter to the letters. Clear Rhinestone brads were added for a little more sparkle.
For this one, I stamped the image again on artichoke and on summer sun in those ink colors. I cut out the star and the tree and put each on a pop dot. For the star, I just cut a snip off the edge of the sheet of pop dots so it would be small enough and not show. This was the first time I have used my photo corner punch also. I love those things and it is so easy to make them when you have a punch! In case you haven't seen it, it has two sizes on one punch. Space Saving!! LOL I used the tool kit to add the paper piercing. The corners are also up on pop dots.
This one was the most time consuming, however it is still fairly easy. And it gives you great results, don't you think? I found the directions for the Ribbon Frame at Waltzingmouse's Blog. I do not own the slot punch that she used, so I simply used my exacto knife to make the slits. She has some beautiful examples of these ribbin frames on her site. I stamped the image twice here also, and colored it in with aqua painters. I used Going Grey, Artichoke and Real Red. I had to use the reinker instead of just the lid of the inkpad to get a decent red though. When I used just the ink in the lid of the pad, the color was very pink. I feel like this card needs a little something else. I am still pondering it. But I wanted to go ahead and share all three cards with you.
Thanks for stopping by and as always, I'd love to hear your comments and Have a Stamptacular Day!!
After I worked on the Christmas Tag Box the other day, I got to thinking about Christmas. It is my favorite holiday of the year. I start decorating my house really early. Maybe not July early, but pretty early. (Much to the chagrin of my DH and kiddos.) Hey, if it were up to me, I'd probably leave the decorations up all year! One time I even thought about working in a Christmas Shoppe just so I could be surrounded by all the fun goodies all the time!! Anyway, since I can't start getting out the decorations yet, I decided to break out my other Christmas stamp sets instead. I had one set(OK, OK, more than one. I horde them. There I said it.) that hadn't seen any ink yet. It's called "Big on Christmas" and has 3 stamps. So, I showed the set some love and inked it up! I made three fairly simple cards, one with each of the images. My thought was that maybe these cards could be used at a workshop. Even newer stampers could complete all three cards in one evening. I used the same color scheme for all three. This also helps keep things simple for beginning stampers, but is also a nice cohesive look for all stampers. I used Creamy Caramel, Always Artichoke, Real Red, Ballet Blue and Whisper White. I used 5/8" Red Grosgrain Ribbon for all of them. For the background, I used the coordinating Christmas Chatter Wheel. I didn't have ink cartridges for all of the colors I wanted, so I simply rolled the wheel onto the ink pad and inked up the wheel that way. That works just fine when you have a short ways to go. I inked, rolled, inked and rolled for each background ~ there are two lines of the wheel on each one.
For the snowman, I stamped the image a second time, cut out just the snowman and colored him in using an aqua painter. He has a Going Grey hat, Ballet Blue hat band, Pumpkin Pie nose, and Artichoke and Red holly. I used a pop dot to pop the image up. I used a 2 way glue pen to add glitter to the letters. Clear Rhinestone brads were added for a little more sparkle. 
For this one, I stamped the image again on artichoke and on summer sun in those ink colors. I cut out the star and the tree and put each on a pop dot. For the star, I just cut a snip off the edge of the sheet of pop dots so it would be small enough and not show. This was the first time I have used my photo corner punch also. I love those things and it is so easy to make them when you have a punch! In case you haven't seen it, it has two sizes on one punch. Space Saving!! LOL I used the tool kit to add the paper piercing. The corners are also up on pop dots. 
This one was the most time consuming, however it is still fairly easy. And it gives you great results, don't you think? I found the directions for the Ribbon Frame at Waltzingmouse's Blog. I do not own the slot punch that she used, so I simply used my exacto knife to make the slits. She has some beautiful examples of these ribbin frames on her site. I stamped the image twice here also, and colored it in with aqua painters. I used Going Grey, Artichoke and Real Red. I had to use the reinker instead of just the lid of the inkpad to get a decent red though. When I used just the ink in the lid of the pad, the color was very pink. I feel like this card needs a little something else. I am still pondering it. But I wanted to go ahead and share all three cards with you.
Thanks for stopping by and as always, I'd love to hear your comments and Have a Stamptacular Day!!
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
How did it get to be July?!
Wow! I can't believe it is July already! What happened to June? I am really sorry that I didn't post much last month. I do have a few exciting announcements and a (hopefully) fun new tutorial for you. Maybe this will make up for last month being so slack!
So let's get right to it! First, some announcements...
The new 2009-2010 Stampin' Up! Idea Book and Catalog is here! Woot!
It is oh so dreamy! You can order from it now! Like NOW! You can go to my website and click on the shop now button at the top. I really think this year's catalog is one of my favorites! After you go take a look-see, be sure to come back and check out my tutorial below.
Also while you are over on my SU website, be sure to check out the awesome new promotion called Summer Fun. The first thing you will want to check out is the Special of the Week! This week's special is the scallop edge punch. A must have tool! And it is on sale this week only for $10.99. Be sure to check back each week of July for a new special.
Ok, now for the tutorial. On page 14 of the new catalog there is a Hostess Stamp Set called Christmas Punch. It is a set of 7 stamps that are for making gift tags. They coordinate with several of our punches, including the scallop oval, wide oval, and tag punches plus others. The sample for the set is a little divided box that holds 4 sets of tags. I have seen some other examples of the box on sites like SCS. However, they all have only the 4 sections. I wanted to have a box that I could put 6 tags in, because there are 6 stamps that make tags in the set. (The 7th stamp is a to/from stamp.) So I set about creating a box with 6 compartments. I hope you like it! Now, let's get started.
You will start with an 8 1/2 x 11 inch piece of cardstock. From this you will cut the following pieces: 6 x 6 1/2, 5 x 1 7/16, and 2 pieces at 7 15/16 x 2 3/16. This first picture shows you how I fit all the pieces onto the 8 1/2 x 11 cardstock. I slid them apart a bit so you could see the edges. Please excuse the puzzle - I ran out of space to take pictures. sorry! Maybe one day I'll be all rich and famous and will have a room, a big room, all to myself. And I will spend all my time in there crafting and taking amazing pictures and listening to music that is not by Miley Cyrus or the Jonas Brothers.... well, maybe the Jo Bros can stay, I do like that Love Bug song ... but I digress.
Now for the scoring. Score the 6 x 6 1/2 piece at 3/4 inch on all 4 sides. Score the 5 x 1 7/16 inch piece in half (it's right around 3/4 of an inch). Score each of the other two pieces at 1 1/2, 2 1/4, 3, 4 5/8, 5 3/8, 6 1/8. (That is 6 score lines on each of those 2 pieces.) They will look like this:
Next, we will fold and assemble. Fold the 5 x 1 7/16 piece in half. (Later I added some adhesive on the inside to make it sturdier.)
Fold the 2 rectangular pieces into mountain folds. Like so:
You will need to cut 4 slits in the 6 x 6 1/2 piece at the edges to make the corners. Then you will fold up the flaps and use a strong adhesive (like SU's sticky tape) to make the box.
And now for the inserts. I ran a bit of snail (double sided adhesive) along the bottom of the inserts. I flipped each piece over and put the snail on the 3 flat spaces. This will help make the box stronger. Put in one insert, being sure to get it lined up in the corners, and smooth over where the adhesive is. Add the long middle piece next. (the 5 x 1 7/16 piece) No need for adhesive here. Then add the second folded insert, smoothing over where the adhesive is again. This should all make a nice snug fit. And look like this:
I put some tags in there just for the picture. These tags weren't finished or anything.
Now to make the cover. I used a window sheet (or transparency) that I cut to 5 1/8 x 11. Score along the 11 inch side at 2 7/8, 3 5/8, 8 1/4, and 9 inches. Fold on all of the score lines using a bone folder to be sure to get very crisp folds. You will have about a 1/4 inch overlap left to add the adhesive. This will make a sleeve to slide over the box. It's a bit hard to see here, but you know, maybe one day I will be rich and famous and have a room.... oh, you know....
And there you have it. Now all you have to do is fill it with tags and finish it off with some ribbon or what have you. Here is my finished project:
Now, go forth and make one of your own. And if you have an 8 year old, be prepared to answer the "Why are you working on Christmas stuff in July??" question. Because I can. Because I am dreaming of cooler weather. Because I can't wait for Daddy to buy everything on my Stampin' Up! wish list! I'm sure you'll think of something.
All right. I am done for today. I really hope you enjoy this tutorial and that you find it useful. I would love to hear your comments! And as always, I hope y'all have a Stamptacular Day!
So let's get right to it! First, some announcements...
The new 2009-2010 Stampin' Up! Idea Book and Catalog is here! Woot!
It is oh so dreamy! You can order from it now! Like NOW! You can go to my website and click on the shop now button at the top. I really think this year's catalog is one of my favorites! After you go take a look-see, be sure to come back and check out my tutorial below.Also while you are over on my SU website, be sure to check out the awesome new promotion called Summer Fun. The first thing you will want to check out is the Special of the Week! This week's special is the scallop edge punch. A must have tool! And it is on sale this week only for $10.99. Be sure to check back each week of July for a new special.
Ok, now for the tutorial. On page 14 of the new catalog there is a Hostess Stamp Set called Christmas Punch. It is a set of 7 stamps that are for making gift tags. They coordinate with several of our punches, including the scallop oval, wide oval, and tag punches plus others. The sample for the set is a little divided box that holds 4 sets of tags. I have seen some other examples of the box on sites like SCS. However, they all have only the 4 sections. I wanted to have a box that I could put 6 tags in, because there are 6 stamps that make tags in the set. (The 7th stamp is a to/from stamp.) So I set about creating a box with 6 compartments. I hope you like it! Now, let's get started.
You will start with an 8 1/2 x 11 inch piece of cardstock. From this you will cut the following pieces: 6 x 6 1/2, 5 x 1 7/16, and 2 pieces at 7 15/16 x 2 3/16. This first picture shows you how I fit all the pieces onto the 8 1/2 x 11 cardstock. I slid them apart a bit so you could see the edges. Please excuse the puzzle - I ran out of space to take pictures. sorry! Maybe one day I'll be all rich and famous and will have a room, a big room, all to myself. And I will spend all my time in there crafting and taking amazing pictures and listening to music that is not by Miley Cyrus or the Jonas Brothers.... well, maybe the Jo Bros can stay, I do like that Love Bug song ... but I digress.
Now for the scoring. Score the 6 x 6 1/2 piece at 3/4 inch on all 4 sides. Score the 5 x 1 7/16 inch piece in half (it's right around 3/4 of an inch). Score each of the other two pieces at 1 1/2, 2 1/4, 3, 4 5/8, 5 3/8, 6 1/8. (That is 6 score lines on each of those 2 pieces.) They will look like this:
Next, we will fold and assemble. Fold the 5 x 1 7/16 piece in half. (Later I added some adhesive on the inside to make it sturdier.)
Fold the 2 rectangular pieces into mountain folds. Like so:
You will need to cut 4 slits in the 6 x 6 1/2 piece at the edges to make the corners. Then you will fold up the flaps and use a strong adhesive (like SU's sticky tape) to make the box. 
And now for the inserts. I ran a bit of snail (double sided adhesive) along the bottom of the inserts. I flipped each piece over and put the snail on the 3 flat spaces. This will help make the box stronger. Put in one insert, being sure to get it lined up in the corners, and smooth over where the adhesive is. Add the long middle piece next. (the 5 x 1 7/16 piece) No need for adhesive here. Then add the second folded insert, smoothing over where the adhesive is again. This should all make a nice snug fit. And look like this:
I put some tags in there just for the picture. These tags weren't finished or anything. Now to make the cover. I used a window sheet (or transparency) that I cut to 5 1/8 x 11. Score along the 11 inch side at 2 7/8, 3 5/8, 8 1/4, and 9 inches. Fold on all of the score lines using a bone folder to be sure to get very crisp folds. You will have about a 1/4 inch overlap left to add the adhesive. This will make a sleeve to slide over the box. It's a bit hard to see here, but you know, maybe one day I will be rich and famous and have a room.... oh, you know....
And there you have it. Now all you have to do is fill it with tags and finish it off with some ribbon or what have you. Here is my finished project:
Now, go forth and make one of your own. And if you have an 8 year old, be prepared to answer the "Why are you working on Christmas stuff in July??" question. Because I can. Because I am dreaming of cooler weather. Because I can't wait for Daddy to buy everything on my Stampin' Up! wish list! I'm sure you'll think of something.
All right. I am done for today. I really hope you enjoy this tutorial and that you find it useful. I would love to hear your comments! And as always, I hope y'all have a Stamptacular Day!
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