When Curling and Crafting Intersect...Again!

 When my work space starts to look like this, you know it's time for another Bonspiel and some more welcome bags.  This time, it's for the Embassy Row Spiel hosted by our home club.  (visit curldc.org for more details, curlers!)  With the Embassy Row, each year a different Country is featured.  This year in honor of the host country of the upcoming 2018 Winter Olympics, we're featuring South Korea.

 Starting point for my design was the South Korean flag and I went with that lovely center focal point first.  Here's where the Curling and Crafting intersect best.  I looked at the design and thought "How can I make that quickly and easily with the tools I have?"  Then it came to me:  Paisley Framelits Dies!  You just have to adhere two together, attach to a piece of scrap paper and then punch the circle out with the 2" Circle Punch.    I've added some of the pictures of each step below. I thought the design would make a perfect center to a curling house, so the design worked from there.

  Other current products I used in this design were the Large Numbers Framelits and the Layered Letters Alphabet stamps.  I did a flashback to a retired color for the Brilliant Blue ink and paper.  The curling stone is a stamp I carved awhile ago.  It's gotten a lot of use over the years.  
 
   Thanks for stopping by.  If you're curious about curling, visit the link above for the Potomac Curling Club or http://www.teamusa.org/USA-Curling  to find a club near you.

Stamps: Layered Letters Alphabet (AC p. 155)
Ink: Real Red (Marker), Basic Black (Marker), Brilliant Blue (Classic Pad, retired)
Paper: Whisper White, Basic Black, Real Red, Brilliant Blue (retired)
Accessories: Big Shot, Paisley Framelits Dies, Large Number Framelits Dies, 2-inch Circle Punch, Fast Fuse Adhesive, Stampin' Dimensionals

Here's one more picture of the Finished Bag.   Good Curling!

We interrupt this blog....to bring you Winter Holiday Stamping!

Just so you don't think I'm not concentrating on the Winter Holidays, too...I thought I'd share a couple of things I'm working on for some upcoming Christmas Stamping events.  The Women's Group at my church often gets together for crafting events.  I'm really excited because this year, for the first time, I get to share Stamping with this great group.  I feel very honored to be asked to do this Card Crafting workshop.  So here's one of the projects we'll be doing.  It's a very simple stamped card that uses several fun products.  The thing I like about a card like this is each stamper can make it their own.  By using the Presents & Pinecones Washi Tape, the card becomes customizable in a flash.  Here's the scoop on what I used:

Stamps: Christmas Pines (HC p. 19)
Ink: Emerald Envy (stamp pad and marker), Mint Macaron
Paper: Whisper White, Cherry Cobbler, Emerald Envy
Accessories: Big Shot, Lots of Labels Framelits Dies, Silky Taffeta Ribbon Combo Pack (HC p. 20), Presents and Pinecones Washi Tape (HC p. 20), Baker's Twine Trio Pack (HC p. 16), Stampin' Dimensionals

Feeling the Fall Weather

The last few days have been really blustery, so I'm feeling the fall weather.  Not only are the leaves changing color, but they're swirling around much like the leaves in this card.  This is the third card we'll be doing in my First Tuesday Card Class next week.  I hope you enjoy it.  It use one of my favorite annual catalog stamp sets:  Flourishing Phrases and it's matching Flourish Thinlits dies.  I chose Fall colors of Delightful Dijon, Old Olive, Cajun Craze and Rich Razzleberry and added a single leaf cut from the Copper Foil Sheets (Holiday Catalog, p. 47) and the Copper Metallic Thread as shiny accents.  Here's what I used:

Stamps: Flourishing Phrases
Ink: Delightful Dijon, Soft Suede
Paper: Crumb Cake, Cajun Craze, Rich Razzleberry, Delightful Dijon, Old Olive, Copper Foil Sheets
Accessories: Big Shot, Flourish Thinlits, Coopper Metallic Thread, Fine Tip Glue Pen, Mini Glue Dots, Stampin' Dimensionals.

Thursday Re-Use Day and Natural Inspiration

 Once again, I decided to dive into the Retired Stamp Set pool and Re-Use a bit.  These two sets are perfect for this time of year, but, alas, have been retired.  As with last week's Halloween set, contact me if you or anyone you know would like to rescue either of these sets from their boxed up home.  If you don't remember them, they're Magnificent Maple (single wood-mount stamp) from the 2013-2014 Holiday Catalog and Thankful For (in the Clear Mount form) which retired in 2011.  Both make great Fall cards in keeping with this weeks unofficial theme.  Now for the interesting part.  The color scheme here is from an unusual, but natural inspriation.

 I used Watermelon Wonder (that lovely color from the 2015-2017 In Color Collection.  Paired it with, of all things, Rich Razzleberry and Pumpkin Pie from the Brights Collection of colors.  I also added a bit of green.  In this case, another 2015-2017 In Color, Cucumber Crush.  Why?  You ask....To find the answer, we turn to some photographs I took at the Common Ground Fair back in September.  This was taken at one of the Farmer's Market stands where fresh, organically grown vegetables and fruits are on display.  In this case, it was beets!  I couldn't resist the colors and textures when I took this photo.  I hope you'll agree that the display is card-worthy.

The woman at the stand was kind enough to let me snap a few pictures.  Even the roots of the beets have great textures.  Here's another of the shots I took.

I know, the card itself is fairly basic.  It uses only Ink and Paper along with the 2 Retired Stamp Sets and the splatter stamp from the currently available Timeless Textures.  I felt like it was good to remember the simpler side of card making.  But, then again, a little bling would really step this one up...Enjoy!

Here's the recipe:

Stamps: Thankful For (retired 2011), Magnificent Maple (2013-2014 Holiday Catalog), Timeless Textures (p. 120 in the current Annual Catalog)
Ink: Watermelon Wonder, Rich Razzleberry, Pumpkin Pie, Cucumber Crush
Paper: Very Vanilla, Pumpkin Pie, Rich Razzleberry
Accessories: Stampin' Dimensionals

Inspired by a Tie

I have been singing in the same church choir for 30 years.  Through the years, what keeps me going back is the wonderful group of people that I sing with each week.  I am so lucky to know each and every one of them.

Every once in awhile, I get inspired not by our beautiful music, but by the clothing people wear.  This card on the right was inspired by, of all things, a necktie.  Paisley is currently undergoing a resurgence of sorts.  You see the patterns everywhere in Home Decor pieces, in clothing and in paper crafting.  I have to admit I didn't have any idea what to do with the Paisleys and Posies stamp set until I saw the tie.  But since then, I've been a fan.

This card will be part of my November First Tuesday Stamping class, so if you're going to be there, here's a sneak peek.

Here's what I used:  Stamps: Paisleys & Posies (p. 47, Holiday Catalog)
Ink: Cajun Craze, Night of Navy, Mint Macaron
Paper: Very Vanilla, Cajun Craze, Night of Navy, Petals & Paisleys Specialty Designer Series Paper, Copper Foil Sheets
Accessories: Big Shot, Paisley Framelits Dies, Mint Macaron Sheer Linen Ribbon

 Here's a picture of the tie in case you're wondering:

It turns out that Paisley is a pattern that means a lot to my friend's family, so I was inspired to craft several cards for them.  Here is another of the cards I made.  Sorry the photo isn't too clear.

Thanks for stopping by today.  Hope you get inspired to create by a fabric near you, too!

Fall? Well maybe

The calendar says October, but the weather outside here in the Mid Atlantic definitely says "Not yet!"

However, it doesn't mean that we can't imagine the cooler temperatures.  Here's a fall themed card using the Basket of Wishes stamp set from page 49 of the Holiday catalog.  I paired it with the Pretty Paisleys Textured Impressions Embossing Folder (p. 47 of the Holiday Catalog).  My favorite thing about this Embossing Folder is the oval frame shape that coordinates really well with the Layering Ovals Framelits Dies (p. 193 in the Annual Catalog).

Color fans, yes I really did use Always Artichoke for the banner!   I don't use it often, so I thought I'd show it a little love today.

Thanks for visiting.  Here's what I used:


Stamps: Basket of Wishes
Ink: Tip Top Taupe, Early Espresso, Stampin' Write Markers in Always Artichoke, Delightful Dijon, Old Olive, Cajun Craze, Soft Suede, Crushed Curry, Pumpkin Pie, Tangerine Tango
Paper: Whisper White, Tip Top Taupe, Delightful Dijon, Always Artichoke
Accessories: Blender Pens, Big Shot, Pretty Paisleys Textured Impressions Embossing Folder, Layering Ovals Framelits, Baker's Twine Trio Pack (HC, p. 16), Stampin' Dimensionals

Card of the Week: Shellington

 I've been trying to create and send unique cards to my daughter each week.  She's probably getting sick of them by now.  This one, however, I'm pretty proud of.  One of her favorite things to do is watch TV shows for the young at heart.  Octonauts was one of her favorites and her favorite character was Shellington the Otter.  How can you resist an Otter with a Scottish accent?  So naturally, I had to re-create Shellington in Cardstock.  I had been inspired by a Pinterest post from Kelly Kent in Australia from February of 2015.  I saved it knowing that I would want to visit it someday. (Thanks for the inspiration, Kelly!!)  I paired the Octonauts idea with the current Seaside Shore Stamp set and By the Shore Designer Series Paper.  Of course the Swirly Scribbles Thinlits Dies has that great aqua-plant piece that is so useful for many things.

 To make Shellington, I used the 2 of the Layering Ovals Thinlits Dies for the head.  His tuft of hair and collar are from the Fox Builder Punch (as are the ears)  The nose is from Pyramid Pals and his mouth line is from the matching Playful Pals Stamp Set.  Eyes are from the Owl Builder Punch.  His hat is the retired Small Oval Punch paired with 1/2" Circle punch and one of the circles from the Builder Punches (oops, I forgot to write down exactly which one...).  Instead of the Octopus insignia, I took Kelly's suggestion and used a star from the Confetti Stars punch.  The body is another oval trimmed to fit.  Colors:  Soft Suede, Very Vanilla, Tempting Turquoise, Pacific Point, Basic Black and the circle background is Bermuda Bay (it's actually an old piece of the retired

Textured version of the card stock that I found and decided to use!! (See yesterday's post..I'm trying...)  Thanks for visiting today.

Here's the rest of the supplies:
Stamps: Seaside Shore, Playful Pals
Ink: Pacific Point, Mint Macaron, Calypso Coral, Soft Suede
Paper: Mint Macaron,  Very Vanilla, Pacific Point, Bermuda Bay, Tempting Turquoise, Whisper White, Basic Black, Soft Suede, By the Shore Designer Series Paper
Accessories: Big Shot, Swirly Scribbles Thinlits, Layering Ovals Framelits, Pyramid Pals Thinlits, Fox Builder Punch, Owl Builder Punch, Small Oval Punch (retired), 1/2" Circle Punch, Confetti Stars Punch, Mini Glue Dots, Fine Tip Glue Pen

Remembering, Re-using, Re-cycling: Attempts to Craft Sustain-ably...

A few weeks back I mentioned a trip I took recently to the Common Ground Fair in Unity, Maine.  There were lots of examples of folks putting Sustainable Living into action in Gardening, Farming, and Lifestyle.  Many of the crafts-people were repurposing, recycling, and making the most of their available resources.  Occasionally, I walk into my Craft Space and I think..."wow! I have a lot of materials that are just collecting dust, rather than being used."  This goes for both paper and ink and Retired Products.  So, I decided recently that I need to focus one part of my papercrafting on efficiently using what I have.  This includes retired Stamp Sets that are sitting in a Yard Sale box.   So in the interests of Re-using, Re-cycling and keeping waste to a minimum, I decided to launch my version of Throwback Thursday.  Today, I feature an older stamp set that needs "rescuing" from my box of retired products and I am using Card Stock that was cut for a previous card class and has also been sitting in a box waiting to be used.

Does anyone remember this set?  It's called "Toxic Treats" and was available in the Holiday Catalog in 2012.  If you'd like to add the set to your collection, or know someone who is looking for it, be sure to contact me via e-mail to talk about it.  Here's what I used on this card:

Stamps: Toxic Treats (retired from 2012)
Ink: Elegant Eggplant, Old Olive, Pumpkin Pie
Paper: Whisper White, Elegant Eggplant, Old Olive, Pumpkin Pie
Accessories: 2.5 and 2 inch circle punches, 2.25-inch Scallop Circle Punch (retired), sponges, Stampin' Dimensionals.

Paper Pumpkin: Using the Extras

 One of the best (and most challenging) things about Kits is the fact that you usually have leftover supplies after you finish the projects.  This is especially true of Paper Pumpkin Kits.  I don't know about you, but I have a hard time using these extras up quickly enough.  This month's kit was really cool. It came with enough supplies to make 16 of these cute Treat Tubes.  I filled mine with Chocolates and gave them to people who attended my two classes last week.  They're really fun.  But what to do with the extras? 


 Well, I decided to use another Thinlits Die set that I hadn't used in awhile:  The Mini Treat Bag Thinlits.  It fits gift cards, large candy bars, or, in this case, 6 mini Kit-Kats, a favorite of mine.  

So, once again, I used products from the Halloween Night Suite (the Holiday Catalog, p. 50-51)  I decorated the bags with extra pieces of Halloween Night Specialty Designer Series Paper and coordinating card stock colors.  On the Basic Gray bag, I used some of the Halloween Night Designer Washi Tape on the bag and, yes, on the Twisty Tie.  I don't know about you, but we have so many extra Twist Ties around.  See the photos below for how I made this one.  Another great use for Washi Tape!

Stamps: Something Good To Eat (from September Paper Pumpkin Kit)
Ink: Old Olive, Pumpkin Pie, Basic Black, Soft Suede
Paper: Basic Gray, Pumpkin Pie, Halloween Night Specialty Designer Series Paper, Printed Die Cuts from September Paper Pumpkin Kit, Adhesive Banners from September Paper Pumpkin Kit
Accessories: Big Shot, Mini Treat Bag Thinlits Dies, Halloween Night Washi Tape, Halloween Night Baker's Twine, Mini Tassels, Linen Thread (extras from the Paper Pumpkin Kit, too!) 

Twisty Tie photos: 

1. Twisty Tie.  It doesn't have to be perfect.








  2.  Place Tie on Washi Tape

 3. Fold Washi Tape over top to cover and seal

 4.  Trim Washi Tape

5. Close your treat bag!  With style, naturally.

Popcorn Box, Halloween style

 Halloween wouldn't be complete without a monster project.  This year, I was inspired by the Home Sweet Home Thinlits Dies when I saw the Roof Shingle piece and immediately thought "Monster Hair!"  Not only that, but the Curved Banner piece really makes the greatest teeth, too.  The eyebrows are from the Arched Window Frame die piece in the set, too.  All that's missing here is the "Om Nom Nom" sentiment.  I have one from the retired "Ghoulish Greetings" set from awhile ago.  Just need to find it...

 In any case, the box is the wonderfully versatile Popcorn Box.  I'm going to make several of these for my son and his roommates.  They're more apt to be watching Monster Films this month, so the bags of popcorn will be welcome.  Thanks for stopping in today.

Here's what I used:

No stamps yet (until I locate that Om Nom Nom...now where did I...??)
Paper: Old Olive, Basic Black, Whisper White
Accessories: 1-inch Circle Punch, 1/2-inch Circle Punch, Big Shot, Popcorn Box Thinlits Dies, Home Sweet Home Thinlits Dies, Fast Fuse Adhesive

Too much Spooky Fun? Never!

Happy Monday!

I CASED this bag right from the pages of the Holiday Catalog.  Page 52, to be exact.  My version is a bit smaller and uses slightly different colors.  However, I did bring out the Gift Bag Punch Board (p. 184 in the Annual Catalog) which hasn't seen too much activity lately.  I really love how the bags come together using this tool.  This one holds a bag of candy and is perfect to just pop onto a co-worker's desk or into a lunchbox.   I used a 10" x 5.25" piece of the Halloween Night Specialty Designer Series Paper.

Here's what I used:

Stamps: Spooky Fun
Ink: Basic Black Archival Ink
Paper: Crushed Curry, Old Olive, Basic Black, Halloween Night Specialty Designer Series Paper.
Accessories: Big Shot, Halloween Scenes Edgelits Dies, Triple Banner Punch, 2" Circle Punch, Snail Adhesive.

More Halloween Treats

Here's the next set of Halloween Treats that I made to send the kids.  I hope you enjoy them.  This post is a bit longer because I included a tutorial on how I made them in case you can't get to an event to make them.  I used Jar of Haunts stamp set, and various papers and embellishments from the Halloween Night suite of products on pages 50 - 51 of the Holiday Catalog.  The treat bags are from the main catalog.  I'll try to highlight things as I go along in the tutorial.  Since this is my first attempt at a tutorial, please be patient if I get too wordy!  Hope you enjoy making these fun treats.  Of course they start with Candy Corn (a Halloween staple in our house because my son doesn't eat chocolate)

1. Take a 3" x 12" piece of cardstock (here:  Halloween Night 12 x 12 Cardstock Pack from page 51)

    These are Basic Gray and Pumpkin Pie.  Score at 5" and 7"

2.  Fill a Gusseted Cellophane Bag (p. 176 in the Annual Catalog, a bargain at $4.50 for 25 bags!)  with treats.

    Seal Bag with Halloween Night Designer Washi Tape (p. 51 in the Holiday Catalog) or any Washi Tape to match your project.

   I'm always looking for ways to use Washi Tape and this is a quick and easy one!

 3.  Fold Cardstock on scorelines and put 2 strips of strong adhesive in the center section to hold down your treat bag.

    I used Fast Fuse Adhesive (see p. 182 in the AC) for this.  But any strong adhesive such as Mini Glue Dots or Tear & Tape Adhesive (also p. 182) would work just as well.

 4.  Staple the two ends of the cardstock together.  If you haven't tried Stampin' Up!'s  Handheld Stapler (p. 185 of the AC) it's a dream for this.  Plus the staple is a nice mini size.

5.  Cover up that staple with more of the Halloween Night Washi Tape.  If you want, wrap it all the way around for more stability.

 6.  Add a 2.5 x 4" rectangle of Halloween Night Designer Series Paper and a 2" x 3.75" piece Coordinating Cardstock on the front.

 7.  Wrap Halloween Night Baker's Twine (p. 51 HC, again!) around and tie a knot a the top of the bag.

 8.  Stamp Sentiment in Pumpkin Pie (or coordinating) ink on a 1" x 2.75" piece of Whisper White and punch end with Triple Banner Punch (p.186, AC) and punch 1/8" hole in the top for a tag.  Tie onto Bag.  Use a Stampin Dimensional on the end to secure.

    Stamp Jar, Spider and Candy Corn from Jar of Haunts Stamp Set (p. 55, HC)  in Basic Black Archival Ink on Whisper White Card Stock.  Cut out the Jar with Every Day Jars Framelits.  Color Candy Corn with Pumpkin Pie and Daffodil Delight Stampin' Write Markers and Draw the Spider's Thread with Basic Black marker, too.  Adhere with Dimensionals.  Add Halloween Night Enamel Dots for extra embellishment (p. 51 HC)

 Here is another shot of some finished bags.  The complete set of 5 are at the top of the post.

Thanks for sticking with it!  Hope you've enjoyed.  If you would like to see more tutorials, please let me know in the comments or via e-mail.

Have a great weekend!

Spooky Fun

 October has arrived.  It's going to be a fun crafting month.  First job is to start crafting some gift packaging for Halloween Candy that I can send off in boxes to my kids.  Here's the first trio of ideas including one card to show how you can use some extra pieces of Designer Series Paper to keep the scraps to a minimum.

  The Holiday Catalog has several great packaging products for all the Fall and Winter Holidays.  I'm hoping to show you several over the next few months.  I really like the The Home Sweet Home Thinlits Dies (Holiday Catalog, p.40)  The boxes here I copied pretty closely from others I had seen on-line.  The box itself is pretty easy to line up on a 1/2 sheet of 8.5x11 card stock as in the one on the right cut from Smoky Slate.  There is minimal waste.

When you're lining up the die on Designer Series Paper it can be a bit tricky, but if you're careful, you'll have enough extra another house front (or two) for use on cards. Here's the result.  I also loved the idea to use the Pumpkin Pie Glimmer Paper as the light shining in the window of the house.  Use a 1" square of the paper and some mini glue dots and you have an "instant glow."  

My favorite stamp in the  Sweet Home stamp set that coordinates (and Bundles!) with the die set is that little ghost, so I had to put him in the card.  I also used the other Halloween-themed Bundle from the catalog the Halloween Scenes Edgelits Dies (p. 52) and it's coordinating Spooky Fun stamp set on the card.

Needless to say, it was great to pull from both these product bundles to create some fun scenes and boxes.

In case you're wondering, the house contains wrapped Peanut Butter Cups.  I loaded the box through the bottom and closed it with some adhesive Velcro pieces.

Thanks for stopping in.  Here is a list of some of the products I used.  Enjoy!

House Boxes

Stamps: Sweet Home, Ghoulish Grunge
Ink:  Basic Black, Smoky Slate, Pumpkin Pie
Paper: Smoky Slate, Basic Black, Basic Gray, Whisper White, Halloween Night Specialty Designer Series Paper, Pumpkin Pie Glimmer Paper (Holiday Catalog, p. 55)
Accessories: Big Shot, Home Sweet Home Thinlits Dies, Metallic Enamel Shapes, Stampin' Dimensionals, Fast Fuze Adhesive, Mini Glue Dots

Card:

Stamps: Spooky Fun, Sweet Home
Ink: Basic Black, Pumpkin Pie
Paper: Smoky Slate, Crushed Curry, Basic Gray, Basic Black, Whisper White, Pumpkin Pie, Halloween Night Specialty Designer Series Paper, Pumpkin Pie Glimmer Paper
Accessories: Big Shot, Home Sweet Home Thinlits Dies, Halloween Scene Edgelits Dies, Metallic Enamel Shapes, 2-1/2 inch Circle Punch, Stampin' Dimensionals, SNAIL Adhesive, Mini Glue Dots