Upsy Daisy Haiku

Today's card uses the colorful new Haiku Designer Paper which is so gorgeous! Combining it with one of my current favorite sets, Upsy Daisy, yeilds a lovely card, looking fresh yet sophisticated!

Once again (see previous posts) I used my sponge daubers to add another color of ink to an already inked stamp which gives a variation to the coloration of the flowers. Another sponge dauber adds some soft color to the base of the flowers to ground them to the paper. This stamped layer was then added to layers of black and Tangerine Tango.

The card base of So Saffron is layered with Tangerine Tango then the Haiku Designer paper next. The flower layers were added then the Birthday greeting which was stamped in Black, punched out with the Key Tag punch and layered over a circle of Black. I added Black grosgrain across the card then before tying the knot, a piece of Tangerine Tango grosgrain was added and a Filigree flower (which has a hole in the center for a brad to go through) was threaded onto the black ribbon.

Stamps: Upsy Daisy

Paper: Haiku Designer Paper; Basic Black, More Mustard, Tangerine Tango

Inks: Basic Black, So Saffron, Tangerine Tango Classic

Accessories: 1 1/4" Circle Punch, Key Tag Punch, Tangerine Tango striped grosgrain ribbon, Black 1/4" grosgrain, Filigree Designer Brads, Sponge Daubers

Hope you enjoy! Thanks for dropping by!

Happy stamping!

Margaret

Pocket Silhouettes in Scallops

What a great little set these Pocket Silhouettes! With its four organic images and two sentiment stamps, it offers such a variety of uses!

Today's card I made as a top fold so I could use my Scallop Edge Punch on the lower edge. I added a strip of rust cardstock to the back of the card to highlight the scallops. I also made two score lines above the scallops for visual texture and interest.

The central image stamp was inked with markers in rust and artichoke then stamped on white. This was punched out with the new Square Scallop Punch and layered on rust. A 2 3/4" square of artichoke was punched with the Scallop Edge Punch once in the center of each of the four edges resulting in this design. This was layered onto white to tie the focal point together and make it visually pop.

The artichoke layer was adhered to a Blush Blossom cardstock base. Artichoke grosgrain ribbon between this layer and the scored lines finishes off the card.

I love our scallop punches!!

Stamps: Pocket Silhouettes
Cardstock: Blush Blossom, Really Rust, Always Artichoke, Whisper White
Inks: Always Artichoke and Really Rust Markers
Accessories: Scallop Edge Punch, Scallop Square Punch, Artichoke grosgrain ribbon, Personal Trimmer with Scoring Blade (or bone folder and ruler).

Thanks for dropping by. Hope you've had a good weekend!
Margaret

Big Shot Scalloped Envelope Box

Oh my! I'm really having fun trying out projects with my new Big Shot Die Cutting Machine! Stampin' Up! revealed this new-to-us product at Convention in August and we've all been totally excited about it ever since! This addition brings another dimension to our projects, from card-making, scrapbooking to all kinds of 3-D projects! What fun!

One of the dies available that comes with the purchase of the Starter Kit (Holiday mini catalog, pg. 26) is the Stampin' Up! Exclusive Bigz© Scallop Envelope Die. Today's project uses four of these envelope die cuts to make the cutest lil' box to hold a gift, remembrance or treasure! The directions for making this box are on this blog. Thanks, Jane, for the inspiration! Can't you just see using these boxes for a surprise gift on someone's desk, as a hostess gift, or to take a gift to someone in the hospital? That would certainly brighten up their day! (edited to add: I have since made a holiday scalloped envelope box and posted it here. I love how it turned out!)

I used Riding Hood Red cardstock for the envelopes and wrapped the box with the chocolate polka dot Designer Paper. I then die cut the flower strip from Baja Breeze and finished the front with the True Blue Friends punch from Punches Three set. I filled the cello bag with chocolate kisses and tied it with the lucious coordinating Baja Breeze grosgrain.

Stamps: Punches Three (Level 1 Hostess Set, p. 17)
Dies: Bigz© Scallop Envelope die, Flowers Decorative Strip die
Cardstock: Riding Hood Red, Chocolate Chip, Baja Breeze; Holiday Treasures Designer Paper
Inks: Chocolate Chip
Accessories: Big Shot, Baja Breeze grosgrain ribbon, Square Scallop Punch, Sticky Strip Adhesive
The Big Shot and all the current dies are listed in the Holiday Mini Catalog, effective Oct. 1 to Jan. 18. There is a special Starter Kit which includes the Big Shot, dies and cutting platforms; there is also the cutest "Doctor's Bag" which holds the machine, dies and cutting platforms for convenient storage and transport. For any of my customers who purchase the Starter Kit from me, I will give you one of the single Sizzlets© dies ($4.95) of your choice on your order which will qualify you for a Level 1 Hostess Set and $20. worth of free merchandise! Contact me for details.

Have a fun stampin' day!
Margaret

Snow Swirled Christmas!

My first Christmas card of the season! I'm so glad I ordered this Snow Swirled set while it was on sale at 15% off this month ! (It's still on sale until Sept. 30th from your Stampin' Up! demonstrator). I'm really enjoying it; it's easy to work with. The images could also be embossed in silver or gold for a rich and elegant look.

This is a Make and Take card I designed for a party last night. The tree is stamped in Always Artichoke on vanilla cardstock. I stamped the smallest snowflake in the set onto the tree in red and added the sentiment below in the same red. A simple tie of red taffeta ribbon on top of the tree adds to the festive air.

The snowflake was stamped with VersaMark on red cardstock and embossed with a mixture of white and hologram embossing powder. I used the perfectly matched (!) Snow Blossom Punch to punch it out then applied it with a Dimensional. The hologram ep is retired but Iridescent Ice could be used instead.

The card base is artichoke and stamped with the largest snowflake in VersaMark for a subtle background. The main image is layered on Riding Hood Red. I really like this color combination! The verse that is included in the set is stamped inside to complete the card!

Stamp set: Snow Swirled
Inks: Always Artichoke, Riding Hood Red, VersaMark
Cardstock: Always Artichoke, Riding Hood Red, Very Vanilla
Accessories: Snow Blossom Punch, White and Hologram (retired) Embossing Powder, Heat Tool, Riding Hood Red Taffeta Ribbon.

Thanks for dropping by! Come back again soon!
Margaret

TSSC36 Pocket Silhouettes

Here it is the beginning of a new week again and time for Technostamper's Monday Sketch Challenge! I'm so glad to get to participate this week. These are good stampin' "exercise"! : )

Here is this week's sketch from Mary Jo (aka Technostamper):

I turned the sketch on it's side this week in order to use my new Pocket Silhouettes stamp set for the first time. I really like this set and its organic images. They are rather dainty and can be used on small cards, as backgrounds, singley or in groupings as in my card below. AND this is one of the stamp sets that is 15% off it's regular price until September 30! I hope you've purchased yours already so you don't miss out! There are some wonderfully versatile and useful sets on that list!

My card base is Elegant Eggplant stamped with the Stitched background in Eggplant ink. It shows up in person but not so much here because of the lighting (sorry I had to take this picture at night). The lower layer is Lavendar stamped with the Canvas stamp in VersaMark, layered on Vanilla then the sentiment was stamped with Eggplant Craft ink and embossed with Clear EP. A length of olive grosgrain with a tie encircles this layer.

I stamped two of the pussy willow images in olive and then used markers to ink up the flower stamp for the center. I love that new Wide Oval punch and it is just right for these images. After punching them out, I sponged olive ink around the edges of each oval and layered them over the Lavendar layer with Stampin' Dimensionals..

Stamps: Pocket Silhouettes, Heard from the Heart (sentiment); Stitched and Canvas Background stamps
Ink: VersaMark, Eggplant Elegance Classic and Craft, Old Olive
Markers: Eggplant Elegance, Old Olive
Cardstock: Eggplant Elegance, Lavendar Lace, Very Vanilla
Accessories: Wide Oval Punch, Old Olive 1/4" grosgrain ribbon, Stampin' Sponge, Dimensionals, Clear Embossing Powder. All products from Stampin' Up!

This is a really a nice sketch; it is just great for this stamp set! I'll be using this one again!

You can see Technostampers blog and card here as well as the listing of other team members who participated today. Join in by making a card of your own using this sketch and then posting a link in a comment here or on Technostamper's blog.

Thanks for dropping by today! Happy First Day of Fall!!
Margaret

Another Upsy Daisy card!

Yes, another card made with this wonderful set! I am really enjoying it and it has really been a hit with my customers too! This is a card we did for the Make 'n Take at a recent Stampin' Up! party.

I inked up the flowers as I did with some of the previous cards I've posted. First, ink the stamp with the lightest color, in this case, Pink Pirouette. Second, add your darker ink color to the stamp with a sponge dauber to selected places on the stamp to add depth and contrast, then stamp it on your cardstock. I then used a different sponge dauber to add some Kiwi Kiss to the layer and added some speckles with my Color Spritzing Tool and a coordinating marker.

The sentiment is from the All Holidays set, stamped in red on white cardstock, then layered on Kiwi Kiss. The corners of each layer were treated with the Ticket Corner Punch for interest. A length of the new Riding Hood Red grosgrain ribbon was tied with a knot then adhered around the completed card.

Stamps: All Holidays, Upsy Daisy

Paper: Riding Hood Red, Pink Pirouette, Whisper White

Inks: Riding Hood Red, Pink Pirouette, Kiwi Kiss

Accessories: Ticket Corner Punch, Sponge Daubers, Riding Hood Red grosgrain ribbon

Thanks for dropping by today! Have fun stampin'!

Margaret

p.s. Feel free to leave a comment or just say "Hi" and where you're from! ☺

Silhouette Challenge Card

I've mentioned before about the challenges we have on one of my online groups. Well, I recently received this beautiful card from Janet Hindman for the Silhouette Challenge which was to use a silhouette stamp set from the Silhouette Style Watch in the Stampin' Up! catalog.

Janet used Upsy Daisy, which is hugely popular, probably because #1, it's daisies, #2, it's so versatile and can be used with SO many techniques to get completely different looks, and #3, it's on sale but only until Sept. 30! If you haven't purchased yours yet, don't delay any longer or you'll miss out on 20% off this terrific set!

Janet used a crisp color scheme of Bravo Burgundy and Whisper White. The unique look of this card is achieved by stamping the daisies image with white Staz-On ink on a sheet of clear acetate (such as a clear transparency) and layering this over colored paper, in this case the plaid from Parisian Summer DSP. I really like how she used the large script word at the top and the daisies at the bottom. It's all set off with a tie of the 1/4" Bravo Burgundy grosgrain ribbon.

Stamps: Upsy Daisy, Wonderful Words
Ink: Staz-On White, Bravo Burgundy Classic ink
Paper: Parisian Summer DSP; Bravo Burgundy and Whisper White cardstock
Accessories: Burgundy 1/4" grosgrain ribbon, clear acetate sheet

Thanks, Janet, for such a lovely card and technique!

Have fun stampin' today! Thanks for dropping by!
Margaret

Inspired by Nature TSC #35

It's Monday again so it's time for Technostamper's Monday Lunchtime Sketch Challenge! I had to miss last week so I'm glad to get to participate again today!

Here's the sketch for this week:

As I looked at this sketch, I was excited that I could use my new Sizzix Scalloped Circles die for my Big Shot for the round design! I chose to use the Sweet Always Designer Paper which I thought would work well with the Inspired by Nature stamp set. The base card is Regal Rose, layered with one of the stripes from the DSP. The additional layer is the chocolate chip dotted paper, layered on Pumpkin Pie. I die cut the scallop circle from Regal Rose cardstock.


I stamped the flower on white then cut out the circle with my Coluzzle, sponging around the edges with Regal Rose then adding faint speckles with my Color Spritzer Tool (p. 193 of catalog). This is a COOL tool for adding specks of color to your projects plus giving some depth also!

For the bottom horizontal element of the design, I used the 1/4" grosgrain ribbon in Pumpkin Pie to make a bow of sorts using a silver flower slide from the Stylized Silver Hodgepodge Hardware.

This was a fun sketch. Join the team by making your own version, putting it on the web and posting a link to it in the comments section of either my blog or Mary Jo's at www.technostamper.com

Stamps: Inspired by Nature
Paper: Sweet Always DSP; Regal Rose, Whisper White, Pumpkin Pie
Accessories: Earth Elements brads, Ticket Corner Punch, Coluzzle, Stylized Silver Hodgepodge Hardware, 1/4" Pumpkin Pie grosgrain ribbon, Sponge Daubers, Stampin' Sponge.

Tools: Big Shot die cutting machine, Scalloped Circles die, Color Spritzer Tool, Coluzzle.

Thanks for dropping by! Try to stamp a little love for someone today!
Margaret

Parisian Summer Upsie Daisy

Here's another Upsy Daisy Birthday card but this time using a totally different color scheme and look. Obviously I'm enjoying this new Silhouette Style Watch set (which is still on sale until the end of this month!)

I stamped the daisy image three times on white cardstock, beginning with the lightest (pink) to the darkest ink. The sentiment was stamped in burgundy and again on saffron; the saffron "Birthday" was punched out with the Word Window Punch and layered exactly over the white "Birthday". The daisy image was layered on pink (both layers had their corners rounded) then on burgundy. I punched a place for the ribbon to thread through the left side of this layer with the Horizontal Slot Punch then tied a knot and added another knot of ribbon.

The card base is burgundy, a pink layer over that, then a layer of a burgundy plaid from the Parisian Summer Designer Paper. (I love that paper!) The plaid makes a perfect foil for the free breezy daisies. The final touch was added with one of the new Felt Fushion flowers in pink layered on a punched saffron flower and centered with a yellow rhinestone brad (gotta have at least a little bling!) ☺

Stamps: Upsy Daisy!
Papers: Parisian Summer Designer Paper; Bravo Burgundy, Pink Pirouette, So Saffron, Whisper White cardstock
Ink: Bravo Burgundy, Pink Pirouette, So Saffron
Accessories: Corner Rounder, New Felt Fusion, Fire Round Rhinestone Brad, BoHo Blossoms Punch, Word Window Punch, Apricot 1/4" grosgrain ribbon, Horizontal Slot Punch

Thanks for dropping by. Hope you have a safe weekend and our friends and family impacted by the hurricane on the Texas coast will be safe and free from harm.

Margaret

Upsy Daisy Birthday

Here's another Upsy Daisy card--I really am enjoying this set. It comes with three different sentiment stamps which make it quite versatile; today I'm using the birthday one.

I inked the daisy silhouette stamp in Baja Breeze then, using a sponge dauber, added the darker Pacific Point ink. Baja Breeze ink was sponged around the outside edge, then Banana ink was applied to the center with another sponge dauber.

Stamps: Upsy Daisy, Stitched (background)

Inks: Pacific Point, Baja Breeze, Barely Banana

Cardstock: Pacific Point, Barely Banana, Whisper White

Accessories: Sponge Daubers, Stampin' Sponge, Scallop Edge Punch, Pacific Point Grosgrain ribbon, Ice Round Rhinestone Brads, Corner Rounder, Dimensionals.

Hope you have a stampin' good day!

Margaret

Eastern Blooms TSSC #33

I've finally gotten to participate again in Mary Jo's Technostamper Monday Lunchtime Sketch Challenge! It's already sketch #33!! What a busy summer it has been! Do you feel that way too?

Today's sketch is a clean and simple design; I like it and found it easy to work with.

I purchased the gorgeous Urban Garden Designer Series Paper on my very first order from the new 2008 Fall/Winter Idea Book and Catalog. It immediately caught my eye (I love blues and greens together!).

The stripe from the package makes a great basis for the color scheme of the card: Kiwi Kiss, Baja Breeze, Basic Gray and Not Quite Navy.

I stamped the flower from Eastern Blossoms in Not Quite Navy Craft ink and heat embossed it with clear ep then cut it out and mounted it with Dimensionals on Kiwi Kiss and NQN. This was layered onto the striped piece which was also layered on NQN. The fab new Grosgrain Ribbon in Kiwi Kiss was used for the horizontal element in the design. The card base is Kiwi Kiss with a layer of NQN then Baja Breeze, which has been stamped with a delicate line flower from the set. The sentiment from Pocket Silhouettes (on sale this month) is stamped in NQN.

Stamps: Eastern Blossoms, Pocket Silhouettes (sentiment)

Ink: Not Quite Navy Craft; Not Quite Navy, Bali Breeze Classic

Paper: Urban Garden DSP; Kiwi Kiss, Baja Breeze, Not Quite Navy cardstock

Accessories: Kiwi Kiss Grosgrain ribbon, Dimensionals, Clear embossing powder, Paper Snips, Green Bead Duo (center of flower), Crystal Effects (to glue beads on)

I'm glad to be back doing Technostamper's challenges again!

Thanks for dropping by today!

Margaret