Still Stamping

Think Spring

Even though it is so cold outside here in York County, Pennsylvania, it has been sunny and clear.  And after some unbelievable temperatures a couple of weeks ago, everyone is thinking about Spring and hoping that it'll come early.  I think I've found a compromise/solution.  I stay inside whenever I can, dress in nice warm clothing and drink hot tea, and stamp cards with beautiful Spring colors!

I participated in another swap over the weekend and received so many gorgeous samples.  Today I'm doing a little "catch-up" and showing you three samples.  They have several things in common.  All use the same color palette.  All feature stamps and papers that you can get for FREE!  And all are so pretty that I'll be sure to copy (CASE) them later in other color schemes once Sale-a-bration is over.  And I even have MORE of these to share with you later this week

Let's start with this one by Betty Murphy, from Elkridge, MD.

Betty used Botanical Blooms and an accent of the Delicate Dots Designer Series Paper, both exclusive products available only for a limited time during Stampin' Up!'s Sale-a-Bration.  You'll find details in previous posts as well as in the right-hand column.

The colors: Certainly Celery, So Saffron, Bashful Blue.

Betty used a lot of punches, too: Scalloped Circle, 1-1/4" and 1-3/8" circle punches, Scallop Edge and the new Eyelet Border punch.

The accent on the right is celery narrow grosgrain ribbon, threadd through a hole punched with the 1/4" circle punch.

Next, another lovely card made by Heather Boedecker.

She chose the same stamp set andthe same DSP as the previous card, but her accent color ( used for stamping the flower, for matting the DSP rectangles and for the striped grosgrain ribbon) is Taken With Teal!

What a great job Heather did on this card.  The rectangles are perfectly cut and aligned.  And the flower was stamped a second time and cut out, then popped up for a very dramatic focal point.

And please notice that the greeting has been stamped on another piece of DSP (as was the flower).  I think that this is a fabulous card, and I'm so happy to have received it in my swap, so that I can share it with you and use it as inspiration later, too.

  The last card I'll show you today was stamped by my friend and downline Carol Valentine of Westminster, MD.

Carol used Polka Dot Punches (my favorite of the SAB stamp sets this year) and the same DSP and color scheme as the previous cards.  But notice the ribbon she used.  It's from the Ribbon Bundle that you also might choose as your free gift during Sale-a-Bration.

For just a $50 purchase, choose any one of the six free gifts. 

Many of the cards and projects I've shared with you lately have been from swaps I did with other demonstrators.  I will never run out of ideas for new projects, even when my creative muse is AWOL.  Not only does Stampin' Up! provide us (the demonstrators) with tons of ideas, my local group is very active and has so many fun activities to participate in.  I invite you to join the team now, because you'll love being a part of such a wonderful team, AND you'll love the savings.  The starter kit is currently a 45% savings.  WOW!!  What a great value!  Check out the details by clicking on the link in the right-hand column, then feel free to call or email me so that we can get you started.

A Little How-To: The Origami Cup

Also known as the Diaper Fold, this old Origami pattern is not only decorative, it's functional.  I first learned it as a child - we folded squares of paper to make our own disposable paper cups at school.  (My school didn't have indoor plumbing, and the drinking water was an old-fashioned pump outside the door.  It was a one-room schoolhouse, one teacher for two grades.  And the teacher was the same one that had taught my father.  Now you know a little of my personal history, LOL.)

Begin with a square of paper.  My sample uses a 6"x6" piece of Designer Series Paper, with a different print on the reverse side.

 

Fold the paper corner to corner to create a triangle.

   

Turn the triangle so that the long folded edge is at the bottom and the two open points are at the top.

Then fold the lower right-hand corner over to the left-hand edge.  The perfect distance from the top corner is 2 1/2" on the 6" square (that makes it 3 1/2" from the bottom corner).

  The measurements on the grid paper show that I folded this sample to the 3" (mid) mark.  But I discovered that it really works better to have it at 2 1/2" from the top corner.

 

Now fold the lower left-hand corner over to the right side, matching up the edges.

 

Finish up your "cup" by folding down the top layer of the top part of the triangle as shown.

 

A little bit of adhesive under the front flap will hold everything in place.

You can also fold the other layer of the top flap towards the back to make the cup functional for drinking from.

Happy Valentine's Day

  If this looks familiar, it's probably because it is the same basic design as the previous post.  This one, however, is more traditional Valentine's Day colors.  I chose Pretty in Pink, Regal Rose, and Rose Red, as well as Whisper White.

And this card is square, with the fold at the top.  I just thought it would make a nice variation on the standard A-2 cards I usually make and send.

This one required a special envelope (and will also require extra postage to send).

Here's a little pattern for the envelope for you.

Download Envelope_LargeSquare

And remember to come back on Saturday for the instructions on how to fold the pouch that makes the little flower pot/vase for the hearts.

A Basket Full of Polka Dotted Hearts

  If you're a regular reader of this blog, you know that I love:  DSP, Paper Folding, Punches

I recently learned (or re-learned) an Origami fold that I learned as a child.  Now it's called the Diaper Fold.  Then it was just a folded paper cup.  To practice the new fold, I cut a 6x6 sheet of Designer Series Paper from the Delicate Dots paper pack, free during Sale-a-Bration.  It turned out okay, so I decided to go ahead and make something with it.

This Valentine's Day card is the result.  It may not look like your typical Valentine, because it is obviously not pink or red.  But it does have a key component --- hearts!

They were stamped on pretty pastel card stock with Certainly Celery ink and punched out with the new Full Heart punch.  You might recognize the stamp as part of the Polka Dot Punches set (another free gift you can choose with a qualifying purchase during SAB). 

Another pretty little detail is the lacy scalloped border on the folded pouch, made with the new Eyelet Border punch.

Colors:  So Saffron, Bashful Blue, Certainly Celery, Whisper White.

Want to learn how to make this pouch?  I'll have a tutorial for you on Saturday.  And come back tomorrow for another sample using the same fold and the heart punch again.

Thanks for stopping by.

Carol T.

Hello again.  Here I am once more to share one of the cards I received in a recent swap.  Swaps are a wonderful way to gather new ideas, see layouts, embellishments and color combinations that perhaps would never have occurred to you.  Today I am happy to share a card stamped by Vikki Wilson.
It uses the same stamp from Yummy as both of the cards on yesterday's post.  The frame and the words are all on the same stamp.  But Vikki achieved a different look by coloring the image with three different markets.  TIP:  You could also stamp just the frame and use an entirely different greeting inside by using this method.

The designer papers are once again from Delicate Dots, and the color scheme Vikki chose was one you'll see repeated often as I show you these cards.  That's because Stampin' Up! has taken the guess work out of picking a color combination;  the papers do it for us.  Here you see Certainly Celery, Bashful Blue and So Saffron.  Aren't they like a breath of fresh, Spring air?

Aren't they just Yummy?

 Today I'm happy to share two cards done by two stampers named Deb!  First, pictured above, is a card by Deb Valder.  It's yummy colors are Chocolate Chip, Baja Breeze, and Whisper White.  Deb's creation features the Top Note Bigz die for the Big Shot, as well as grosgrain ribbon, a half pearl from the Pretties Kit, and felt flowers from Flower Fusion Too.

The second Yummy card I want to show you was stamped by Deb Paisie.  Although it, too, features the Top Note die for the Big Shot, its look is entirely different.  The middle layer of Deb's card is from the Delicate Dots Designer Series Paper, and it peeks through the vellum die cut, which was sponged with brown ink to give it a very soft, vintage look.  The flower at the top/right is also a die cut- from the Bird w/ Leaves and Flower Bigz Die.

Both Yummy and the Delicate Dots paper are items you can choose for free during Sale-a-Bration, going on NOW!  And if you order online during the month of February, you will also receive a free Spring-Summer 2009 Idea Book and Catalog.  That's an additional free gift for you.  Don't you just love Sale-a-Bration?

Botanical Blooms

Today's guest artist is Claudine Dunn, from Taneytown, MD.  Her card incorporates two SAB stamp sets (Botanical Blooms and Congrats) and one of the ribbons from the ribbon bundle you might choose as your free gift during Sale-a-Bration.  Yes, that's right.  This year you have a choice of four stamp sets, a pack of Designer Series Paper, and a Ribbon Bundle.  Good new is that the colors and many of the images coordinate with one another.  Best news is that they are free with a $50 purchase.  Be sure to see them all by clicking on the Sale-a-Bration link at the top of the right-hand column.

Details on this pretty pastel card:

Bashful Blue, Certainly Celery, Apricot Appeal, Whisper White;  silver brads, sponge
The outlines of the blooms and the greeting are stamped with Basic Gray ink.  Botanical Blooms is a two-step stamp set, so the flowers don't need to be colored in with pastels, markers, pencils, blender pens or watercolors (although you could do that).  You can just stamp them to color them in!  Fast and easy, and so very pretty, as you can see from Claudine's card.

Polka Dot Punches - Hearts and Scallops

I'm happy to share another creation by a guest artist, Connie Heisey.  Connie is my neighbor, my friend, and my upline and mentor in Stampin' Up! 

The details:
Chocolate Chip, Certainly Celery, So Saffron, Very Vanilla

DSP: Delicate Dots

Stamp: Polka Dot Punches

Accessories and embellishments:  Gold Brads, piercing tool and mat from Crafter's Tool kit, taffeta ribbon, gold embossing powder, scalloped border punch, new Full Heart punch

This little detail picture (click on it to see it full size) will give you an idea of how those dots look when embossed.  In my opinion, that's a must.  And the punched dot border that Connie chose to use around the Certainly Celery square is a perfect compliment to the raised dots. 

When I first saw this stamp set, it reminded me of old punched tin ornaments and panels used on antique furniture.  Those always appealed to me, and that's probably the reason that this is my favorite of the four Sale-a-Bration stamp sets.

Which one do you like best?  I'll be sharing samples of all of them in the next few weeks, so be sure to visit again.

Polka Dots are so Romantic!

Perhaps not.  But when you see them in this elegant, sophisticated wedding card created by my friend Cindy Fodor, you'll have to agree that they are indeed very romantic.

Can you see all of the lovely details that Cindy used?  The heart was embossed with white embossing powder on Chocolate Chip ink and punched out with the new Full Heart punch.  (One might say that they were made for each other.  Doesn't that sound more romantic than "coordinating"?)

The little card has images faintly stamped with the floral image from the same set, and it has been sponged to give it a vintage look.  The spiral punch and the tiny clip give it lots of texture.

The background paper is from the SAB free gift, Delicate Dots.  There's taffeta ribbon and an embossed greeting (also with dots!!).  The word stamps are both from another SAB set, Congrats.

Thank you, Cindy, for the beautiful card, and for allowing me to share it with my blog readers.  I know they've enjoyed seeing it.

I'll have another card by a guest artist tomorrow.

Polka Dot Punches and a "Patriotic" Birthday Card

Yesterday's post featured the Five-Petal Flower punch and stamp from the new Sale-a-Bration set Polka Dot Punches.  I thought it appropriate to follow that one with this card, made with another stamp from the same stamp set.

I was inspired by a card I saw on SCS, but that one had Tangerine Tango in the places I used Real Red.  It took me a while to figure out the measurements of each of the panels.

As my "gift" today to you, I'll share those measurements with you.  The Real Red panels are 1.25" x 1/25" and 2.5" x 3.75".  The DSP panels are 2.5" x 1.25" and 1.25" x 3.75"  That should leave a 1/4" border around the outside perimeter and between the four panels.

I used four punches on this one simple card, but they are all concentric circles:  1 3/4", 1 1/4", 1 3/8", and 1/2".

The colors are Pacific Point (one of this year's In Colors), Bashful Blue, Real Red and Whisper White.

You might have noticed that I love to use dimensionals.  Those tiny foam dots are such a bargain and add such "pop".  They also are USPS friendly --- no extra postage required like with some other embellishments.

The design is very geometric, but I hope you find it pleasing.  Sometimes there is tranquility in a nice calm design, even if the colors are bold.

By the way, this was one of the cards my guests made at Saturday's Stamp-a-Stack Birthday Bash.

More tomorrow.

Super Bowl Sunday AND Sale-a-Bration Kick-Off

Well it is indeed a wonderful day to be alive - and a Steelers fan - and a Stampin' Up! demonstrator!  The sun is shining, the sky is clear, the temps are rising, the ice is melting.
I know that many of you will be watching the big game later today, and you won't have time for doing much stamping or web surfing or online shopping.  But when you finally DO get time to read this article, I hope you'll take advantage of all that Sale-a-Bration has to offer.

To Kick Off the event, I'd like to share a card I made using a stamp set and Designer Series Paper that you can get for FREE!  The paper is called Delicate Dots. and the stamp set is Polka Dot Punches.
Both are new releases and are not for sale --- they're free during the Sale-a-Bration event (Feb. 1 - March 31).  You can choose one free gift from the Sale-a-Bration mini-catalog with every $50 purchase of merchandise from the 2009 Spring-Summer Idea Book & Catalog.  Don't have those catalogs?  Not to worry -- check them out by clicking on the links in the right-hand column.

I made this card for a Sale-a-Bration swap I joined.  I will be sharing many of the cards I received in the swap in the coming weeks.  They are such great designs that I want you to enjoy them as much as I do.

The stripes in the DSP are white, Bashful Blue, Certainly Celery, So Saffron, and Sahara Sand.  So those are the colors I chose for the card -- and I used them all.  The flower medallions were such fun to make that I made loads of them and then used up scraps of the DSP to make some alternative designs for the card.

The little flower sits on a folded piece of celery narrow grosgrain ribbon and then on a So Saffron 1 3/4" circle (also punched out, of course).

  Notice how easy it was to make the flower - the Five-Petal Punch made it possible for me to punch out dozens of the flowers after I stamped and embossed them.  Image how difficult that would have been without the punch.

I did make one more card with the same materials and mounted the accent strip and flower on a Bashful Blue card.  I'll show you that one later in the month.

Hope you'll check back often to see more wonderful samples of Sale-a-Bration artwork done by guest artists and myself.

And Good Luck to the Pittsburgh Steelers!!