Wednesday Sketch Challenge at SplitCoastStampers

I actually found some time tonight to play with today's sketch on SplitCoastStampers.

Once again they have come up with a VERY fun sketch. I flipped mine. Instead of having the larger space at the to of the card I put it at the bottom where I added the "Thank you." I just couldn't get it to look right with the words at the top. I think I'm just to traditionally minded when it comes to that. You see the picture first and then your eye moves down to the words. I need to challenge myself a bit more to things like that. But for this one the wording is at the bottom of the card

I am also challenged in other ways. NOT enough time to mention them ALL here but I will tell you one. I'm looking at the card as I'm typing this thinking that my fingers are on the keyboard where they should be. But NO!!! And if you're off just one key it's amazing how funny the words look. Oh and get this. Even the spell check can't help you out completely!!! LOL You would think that when I typed an "f" I would have felt that little bump on the key or noticed that something was wrong. But as I'm thinking about it, as I type my fingers hit the keys just above that area so I never feel those bumps at all. SO that explains that part. As for the not paying attention. Well, we will save that story for some other day!!! LOL

Ok on to my card (it's all about "me" right now! LOL). I used the decorative paper from the Stampin' Up! decorative paper series "Bali Breeze." I actually looked at the package for the name this time so I got it right!! Both of these colors are found in that pack of papers.

I didn't really measure my paper. I printed out the sketch and used that as my pattern. I LOVE how you can do that. It's set up to print out the same size as a card. Isn't that great??? I just set my paper on the area I want that color to be, mark and cut it!! Then I add 1/4" all to the layer (on two sides) and cut it out. It made making the layers SO easy. Now the lamb image didn't quite look right on the piece they had in the sketch and I didn't want to change the sketch. I believe that they are challenging you to use what they put in front of you. Turning it upside down or sideways does not change the sketch, it's still exactly the same size. SO I try to stick within their printed boundaries. It makes the challenge a challenge to keep it as printed. SO with the lamb I taped off the wording on the stamp and just stamped the adorable lamb. I added ribbon in the area below the lamb to fill that space (and it was just what not only that space needed but the entire card!!). I added my wording at the bottom. The "Thank you" came from the "Artfully Asian" set. Notice how straight it isn't??? LOL And you're going to LOVE this. I even used the Stamp-a-ma-jig! Looks like I need a little practice with that tool too!!! LOL

I added a couple of black brads to finish off the bottom area and taped it all together. Such a fun card!

If you have time go to SplitCoastStampers and play with this weeks challenge. Click here to be linked to this sketch.

This card was made entirely of Stampin' Up! products. To view more items made entirely of Stampin' Up! products click here.

Thank you SO much for stopping by,
Wanda

Just a Few Words!

"Just a few words" cuz there isn't any room for more!!! LOL Aren't these fun?? These are made using the small 2" x 2" Post-it Notes. There are several tutorials out there on these which makes it difficult to know who is the originator of it. SO if you know who it is, please let me know so I can give them credit. I have been informed that the original idea for these came from Angela at Chic n' Scratch. Thank you SO much for letting me know.

I will give you the short version of how to make these.

You need a piece of card stock cut 2-1/8" x 4-1/8". Score on the long side at 2" and 2-1/8" (sorry, I had 1-1/8" in there for the size and it should be 2-1/8" so I changed it. Yes, 1-1/8" x 4-1/8" would be too narrow! Thank you Cheryl for pointing that out to me!)

Now take your post it pad and remove about 25 pieces of paper (all at once - not one at a time). You want them to be stuck together. The notes I bought have 3 different colors in the pad and I was able to get 3 little pads from one color. Such a deal!!!

When you have your 25 sheets, stick it to the inside of the card stock.

Decorate the top/front of your holder. Using the Crop-a-dial punch a hole in the upper left corner and insert a 1" binder ring. Add some ribbon to the ring and you're done.

These are pretty simple to make!!! It all depends on how much time you want to spend on the front design!!!

For mine I used the Stampin Up! "Garden Whimsy" set and the "En Francais" background stamp.

The colors I used are Close to Cocoa, Pretty in Pink and Whisper White. I used Basic Black and Pretty in Pink markers to color in the ladybug before I stamped it. That technique is called "Direct to Rubber." You color on the rubber with markers and then huff on it to get the steam of your breath to moisten the ink and then you stamp the multicolored image!!

These notebooks would be great Stamp Camp items or fun for Make N Takes. They make great Hostess gifts and Customer Appreciation gifts too. I haven't tried them at craft fairs but it would be worth it to see if the sell.

This card was made entirely of Stampin' Up! products. To view more items made entirely of Stampin' Up! products click here.

Thank you SO much for stopping by,
Wanda

When a Good Idea Goes Bad!

I had been playing around with some different layouts for a swap I'm going to be participating in and I wanted to try out this layout. This is not the layout I'm going to be using for the swap but I liked it so I thought I'd run with it and make a Father's Day card. Well, it got off to a good start and once I got to that front flap/fold I was totally LOST!!!

I liked it up to the top fold. I thought the "dear dad" in creamy caramel looked good. I had a piece of vanilla on the top of the Handsome Hunter but it looked too plain so I thought I'd break up the color a bit and put the hunter on top. But then the hunter needed a design in it. I wanted to stick with the Father's Day "theme" so I used the necktie and made it a background. I didn't like it and I knew it still needed something to the right if I was going to keep the circle part. So I did the "dear dad" three times in a long row and cut it out. I didn't like that either. Plus the tie in that circle wasn't sitting well with me either.

I felt I needed to add a bit more to the card so I punched out the teal ring and set it on top of the hunter around the tie circle. That did improve that part a bit but I was and am still not satisfied with it. But I'm leaving it this way because I'm not feeling well tonight. My plans are to clean up my worktable and go lay down. I hope I'm not coming down with anything. I don't get sick very often but when I do, I do it up BIG!!

The stamps used here are from the Stampin' Up! "Holiday Blitz" set. It contains 28 little stamps to have a LOT of fun with!!

SO here you have it. A pretty ugly card that will sit in my workroom until I figure out a way to make it look better. I want to keep the "dear dad" creamy caramel background and I want to keep the tie in the circle. I'm open to some suggestions. I will change the card as you suggest so be clear on your instructions. I will post the card on my blog and then I will mail the card to you. SO suggest away and lets see if we can make this card more pleasing to the eye. Please keep in mind the "dear dad" in creamy caramel stays and the tie in the circle stays. Now the colors can be changed but not the two elements (the background and tie). Let's see what you can come up with!! Have fun!

This card was made entirely of Stampin' Up! products. To view more items made entirely of Stampin' Up! products click here.

Thanks SO much for stopping by,
Wanda

I Know You WANT It!!!

Look what I found at Jan's blog "Paper Tango!!!" Yup! Half off!!! How fun is that? Just click here to be brought to the link to the page where you can officially print this coupon. Now the Michael's here in Blaine doesn't accept the JoAnn printed coupons and I guess I'll find out tomorrow if they accept their own coupons off my printer. Let's hope they do!!

Oh and after you are done printing out this coupon take a few minutes to view Jan's blog. This lady is a riot! Plus she has some wonderful items posted too! Thanks for the coupon Jan!!!

Have fun shopping!!!!

Weekend Project! Business Card Holder

It's not just for business cards, it has a bit of depth to it so you could add some candies or even put the gum back in the package!!! I saw the tutorial for this on Michelle's blog "Michelle's Rubber Room." It's pretty simple to make too.

First you do need an package of Orbit gum. I just happened to have a package of it. I saw it on one of the shelves in my workroom. It was opened so I didn't feel too guilty about taking the box! I took a piece of gum out and thought I'd chew some while I was working on this project. Well, apparently I bought that gum a LONG time ago because after just a couple minutes of chewing it the gum got very tough and m jaw became extremely tired. Hmmm, must be old gum. SO I did have to toss it out. Now the box is my template!! And for my box it will be a business card holder!!! Not much left to decide there now was there? LOL

In Michelle's instructions she tells you to trace the box onto a piece of firm but not too thick cardboard. She recommended the "stuff" that comes on the back of the Stampin' Up! decorative papers. The REALLY nice white think cardboard. Well, don't you have to use up a package of papers to get to that cardboard???? LOL SO I got this piece of cardboard and I traced my pattern to it. Tape some decorative paper to the other side of the cardboard. I forgot that step and cut out my cardboard piece. SO I had to tape the paper on and then cut that out too. UGH!!! Once you have your pattern cut out you score the lines the way they are scored on the box.

To adhere the box together she recommends you use the sticky strip tape. You do need something strong to hold the box together. Once you get the box taped together you can decorate it as you like. She even suggested putting in some holes on the top and making it into a purse.

The flap closes with Velcro dots. Add your business cards and you're done!!

Pretty simple and just TOO cute!!

For more weekend projects click here.

This card was made entirely of Stampin' Up! products. To view more items made entirely of Stampin' Up! products click here.

Thank you SO much for stopping by,
Wanda

Whatever!

This is one of those "whatever" cards. You can sue it for almost anything you need a card for. It would make a great birthday card, thinking of you card, friendship card, etc.

I was playing around with some leftover strips of decorative paper and decided to layer them and use them. I mean, it's almost a crime to toss out any decorative paper!!! LOL If you can't hoard it then you MUST use it but NEVER NEVER NEVER toss any out!!! LOL

The paper is from the Stampin' Up! Berry Bliss decorative paper pack. The ladybug is from the "Garden Whimsy" set. I added a few brads to the upper corner because it cried for something to be placed there. And I wove some cocoa and pink grosgrain ribbon between the 3 strips of layered decorative papers. It was a fun card to make.

This card was made entirely of Stampin' Up! products. To view more items made entirely of Stampin' Up! products click here.

Thank you SO much for stopping by,
Wanda

A Fast & Fun Thank You!

Here's a fun (and fast) thank you card I made using the Stampin' Up! "Fun and Fast Notes." I just LOVE this little bird, it's so cute and sweet! The "Thank You" is from the "Holiday Blitz" set. These words fit perfectly inside the 1-1/4" circle punch. It makes it easy for layering on the Scallop. Such a fun punch to play with.

I used the decorative paper from the "Bali Breeze" pack. It's so bright and colorful. I added 5 brads on the bottom right corner. It needed something there but something wouldn't take away from the main part of the card. I was going to just add one towards the corner but with the design in the paper the brad would get lost or look out of place. So I took out all the color groups of the brads and found the ones that matched the paper and put the matching ones in the centers of the printed marks. It was just enough to give the corner a bit of texture.

This was a very fun card to make and when coloring in the bird and flower I used the markers directly on the card stock. I wanted them to be just as bright and vivid as the background.

This card was made entirely of Stampin' Up! products. To view more items made entirely of Stampin' Up! products click here.

Thank you SO much for stopping by,
Wanda

Anniversary Inspired Card

I was inspired by a card I saw on Nancy's blog, iStamp. I have found a LOT of cards on her blog that I really like and may be doing some SERIOUS casing here!!!

I really liked the simplicity of this card. Plus it had such an elegant touch at the same time

I used the Cuddlebug folder to make the dry embossed background. Speaking of Cuddlebug, did you know that you don't need the Cuddlebug machine or even the Sizzix machine to use a Cuddlebug folder??? You can use a rolling pin! Fortunately I have a Sizzix machine. I didn't want to go out and buy a rolling pin!!! The one I have is a plastic Tupperware one and it's not firm enough to do the job. You really need one that you hold on to the handles and they stay stationary in your hands while the roller part moves.

I have a bunch of wedding bands and I actually knew where they were (shocker, huh?) LOL I slipped them on a piece of organdy ribbon and tied them together. Before I pulled the knot tight I slipped in another piece of organdy ribbon. Once the knot was tight I taped the edges of the ribbon on the backside of the card. I taped that to a brushed gold layer and those two layers went on top of a half sheet of Whisper White card stock folded in half. The words came from the Stampin' Up! "Hugs & Wishes" set. I used the Stamp-a-ma-Jig to position the "Happy" on top of the "Anniversary". I needed them close and stacked on top of each other so I could use the oval punches here. After stamping the words I punched them out and then punched out a larger oval out of Brushed Gold. I taped them together and taped them in place on top of the card.

Now this was a VERY quick card to make!!! For more Quick Cards, click here.


Thank you SO much for stopping by,
Wanda

SC179 True Friend Birthday

Here is the card I made for the Sketch Challenge (SC) at SplitCoastStampers today. This was a very fun and different layout. My first attempt at this card was to make it a masculine card using the Stampin' Up! "Noble Deer" set but the deer or circle of a deer just didn't look right so I set it aside and gave it a bit of thought. Then I came up with the idea that a flower would work better in there. I didn't want to find a frilly flower since I still wanted to use the more masculine "Flannel Plaid" background I had already stamped. It's not like I couldn't just stamp a different background. I wanted to try to work with what I had. VERY unusual for me. Normally I would have just taken a fresh piece of card stock and made a new and different background piece. But I stuck to my guns and worked with what I had before me. I had the colors all picked out and I had the Old Olive pieces all stamped and cut out too. It was the circle part that I needed to focus on.

I got out the Stampin' Up! "One of a Kind" set and took the markers out and colored away. Once I got the flower done and stamped the image on the white card stock I sponged then punched it out. I sponged the edges and set it down to see what else it needed. A brad but not just a regular brad, a shiny rhinestone one was what it needed to brighten up the card. I layered and taped the circles in place and set it on the card. The top upper left area was very large and very empty. I stamped in the "Birthday Wishes" greeting there and gave the card a final look. It still needed something. SO I took out my Mat Pack and added a line of holes for some black brads. The brads just seemed to finish off the card.

This was a very fun and yet quick card to make. If I had to make a bunch of them for a swap it would be a good layout to use. Actually it would be a fabulous layout to use because you can get a lot of those little green strips out of one piece of stamped card stock!!!

If you have time I highly recommend you head on over to SplitCoastStampers and give the Sketch Challenge a try. Or one of the other challenges. Tuesday they have a color challenge that I am seriously thinking about giving a try. I'm afraid to though because I find these challenges addictive!!! LOL

Thank you SO much for stopping by,
Wanda

Father's Day for a Friend

Here is a card I made for a VERY wonderful man. He's the guy who has been doing handyman work in my home for the past few months. He's such a nice guy. He's the kind of person you'd like to have for your dad. He's such a sweet heart! I will be sad when all the projects are completed here, I will miss him!!! I'm sure I'll see him at some events my sister has. I met him through her. Here is how he is "related" to her. It is her husband's brother's wife's sister's father-in-law!!! And now my friend!!!

He's such a calm mellow person and I thought this card would reflect that in him. I wish the water coming off the mill would have turned out bluer but that is what you get when you color in the browns first!!! If I had used watercolor paper I may have been able to tone the brown there down some but since I didn't I had to be careful not to work an area too long or the paper starts to thin and sluff off. Once that happens there is nothing you can do to fix it. You either have to leave that area alone or start a new card. Fortunately I didn't work an area too much for that to happen but I did try to get that water a bit bluer but it didn't work. Only I know that it is suppose to be lighter (well, now you all do too!!!). LOL

I am getting a website open to sell some of my stamps. This one is going to be listed. I have TOO many stamps and I have even more I'd like to purchase. But with no room to add more I must sell the ones I don't use very often. I took this one out to test the rubber to make sure it is still in good condition. As you can tell by the detail in the picture (click on the card for a closer view) the detail is very vivid. After I cleaned the stamp I did spray it with the Stampin' Up! Stamp Mist. It has a fabulous rubber conditioner in it. I use it on ALL of my stamps to keep the rubber from drying out. I great little investment and it doesn't cost much at all, plus the bottle lasts a long time. And it comes with a built-in bonus, it smells SO wonderful!!! As soon as the store is up and running (it's in the process of being established as I type this up) I will let you know so you can go shopping.

Ok, back to my card. I used a blender pen to color in the areas of this card. For the main part of the card I used Ballet Blue card stock and the Stampin' Up! "Flannel Plaid" background stamp and Ballet Blue ink. I used my computer to do the wording and I layered it with a punched circle and a scallop. I added 3 black brads because that side looked like it needed just a little something and once again being it is for a male bows and buttons didn't quite fit the bill!!!! LOL

I like how it turned out, except for that waterfalls part.

For more Father's Day cards, click here.

For more masculine cards, click here.

Thank you SO much for stopping by,
Wanda

Feedblitz Issues Figured Out - Sort of!

Upon checking into my subscriptions part of feedblitz I saw that all of my subscriptions had been canceled. I didn't cancel any of them. I have no idea what happened and I did email feedblitz yesterday but have not heard back from them.

I had checked my junk mail and spam folder and nothing. I had to go and reinstate each subscription individually. That took a long time since I subscribe to almost 100 stamping ones as it is!!! But I finished it and we'll see if I get the feeds tonight. Keep your fingers crossed.

What I find odd is that the responses I got back from a lot of you was that you were receiving your updates regularly. I had subscribed to my own blog and I was not getting the updates. It's such a mystery. But now I know where to look should this happen again. I hope it doesn't happen again. Reinstating each blog one at a time was very time consuming. They need a button to click on to reinstate them all at once. There's one to stop the subscriptions all at once.

Thanks for letting me vent!!!
Wanda

For Someone Special on Father's Day!

With Father's Day approaching rather quickly I thought I should get a few Father's Day samples out on my blog to you. This one I made for a friend who I thought would like getting a card from me. I think it will brighten his day to get this in the mail. I have a few friends like that so I'd better get a move on it and get my needed cards done!!!

This one used the Stampin' Up! set "Noble Deer." And the wording is from the "All Holidays" set.

I used Basic Black for the main part of the card and I added Chocolate Chip on top of that. I added a piece of Old Olive stamped with the "Linen" background stamp using Old Olive ink. The deer and words are stamped in Basic Black on Very Vanilla card stock. Each of those were layered on Chocolate Chip card stock. I added some brads, sponged the edges and that was pretty much it. No ribbons or buttons or bows. They don't speak "masculine" as much as brads do!!! LOL It's a pretty quick card to make too!

For more quick cards click here.

This card was made entirely of Stampin' Up! products. To view more items made entirely of Stampin' Up! products click here.

Thank you SO much for stopping by,
Wanda

Feedblitz Issues

I use the Feedblitz company for my subscriptions. Many of you have subscribed to my blog using this method. I too have entered my name in as a subscriber so I can see that the emails are sent out. I have not received one in about 5 days now. I'm hoping that it is just me not receiving the reminder. I also subscribe to other blogs as well and I have not gotten anything in my emails (or in my spam folder) from those blogs either. I am considering using Feedburner as an alternate subscription form. The Google Reader is another great way to subscribe to blogs too. That one allows you to get the update the minute it entered in. The only catch there is it doesn't come in your email. You have to open the reader each time you want to see who entered something on their blog. You can check it out at www.google.com/reader

Please let me know if you are receiving your email reminders.

Thanks SO much,
Wanda

You Are Invited!!

One of the swaps for the DIVA event was to make a wedding invitation. This wedding invitation layout holds it all. I had used one of the SplitCoast Sketch Challenge layouts for the front. I had gotten the invitation layouts from my friend Katie who was working on her own invitations for her son's upcoming wedding. She had used the Stampin' Up! "Artfully Asian" set on hers. It's VERY beautiful.

On the front of the invitation below the bow I used my computer to do the wording in the circle/arch form.

When you open the first fold you see the RSVP card. I think I would turn it around so those receiving it would see the postage stamp and know this is the card to be mailed back in. I set it in place with photo corners I made using a Marvy photo corner punch. This can be done with decorative scissors and scoring or you can also purchase photo corners. That would be much quicker if you're making LOTS of invitations.

The next part of the invitation you see is the actual invitation itself. With the date, time, place part. The designs on the sides were stamped on. The rest was done on the computer.

When you open the bottom flap you see the reception time/place card and the map to the church and or reception. I like having all the pieces on one card. Though as I look at it I'm thinking that the invitation part itself should be on top and then the RSVP card should be the 2nd thing they see. Then open it up and show the reception and map pieces.

Most of the card was done on the computer which really does save LOTS of time and not to mention how much money you save doing it yourself. And since most weddings are booked so far in advance you have plenty of time to work on them yourself or hire your Stampin' Up! demonstrator to do them for you!!!

This is a very elegant wedding invitation and would be pretty in almost any color. I chose these colors because I just like them together.

Thank you SO much for stopping by,
Wanda