Four-Panel "Note"

Here's a sneak peek at one of the sets coming out in Stampin' Up!'s new catalog. It is called "Double-line Doodles." I attended one of the Virginia Beach Regionals a little over a month ago and received the set. This little four-panel card was one of the make-and-take style projects we created. The tiny note holder was created by sealing a small envelope, slicing a bit of the end off and using a circle punch to make the semi-circle opening at the top. It's a cute way to hide a tiny message. The colors used to make this card are: Certainly celery, Old Olive, Real Red, More Mustard, Tempting Turquoise. Ribbon: Red gingham, Celery grosgrain & Hemp twine.

Goodbye Balmy Breezes

Here are two simple layouts created with SU!'s "Balmy Breezes" set. The images in this set are great for stamping on top of each other and creating a "weathered" look. For the top sample, I used Really Rust and Always Artichoke craft spots to daub color on the pineapple. I attached the tag with hemp twine onto one of the horizontal stripes of the card. It was an easy way of adding a "layer" without using dimensionals or pop-up glue dots. On the bottom card, I stamped the pineapple on Very Vanilla cardstock and added a layer each of Really Rust and Close to Cocoa. Plain twill tape complements the muted colors and sort of "rugged" feel of the card. The twill tape is secured with Aged Copper brads.

"Balmy Breezes" (along with a vast majority of other sets) will soon retire from Stampin' Up!. It is a bit shocking that some well-designed sets will no longer be offered... but it means that there are more new stamps to look forward to. Stampin' Up! will soon unveil the first of its semi-annual catalogs to customers in July: The Fall-Winter Catalog. I'm looking forward to seeing what's in store then. As it is, SU! offers a great line of stamps and color-coordinated accessories. They are well worth the wait! Check out the SU! site for updates: www.stampinup.com

Joann.com Sale!

Need I say more?! Stop on by (www.joann.com) to get 50% off one regular-priced item! Unfortunately, there are a few brands that aren't included.. but hey, it's worth taking a peek! I bought a Marvy Uchida Mega Scalloped Oval with a discount... it will be great layering with the Giga Scalloped Oval.

Now I'm keeping my eyes peeled for the handy dandy Crop-a-Dile. I have several containers of eyelets sitting around. It would be nice to put them to good use! I love the fact that you can punch holes AND set eyelets or snaps with one tool. I'm sure I am not the only one who stays up until wee hours at night. Who wants to wake up to the sound of hammering or spring-loaded eyelet pounding?

Crafty with Clearsnap

When I read posts on forums or blogs, I'm surprised that many people seem to prefer dye-based ink over pigment ink. The main advantage of dye-based ink is that it dries instantly. However, when it comes to rich color and blending possibilities, Pigment (a.k.a. Craft) ink works best in my experience. Dye inks are absorbed by the type of cardstock people often use. Sometimes, there is a "bleeding" effect that makes stamped images "fuzzy." As long as I apply an even coat with pigment ink, the image looks neatly stamped. One tip to evenly coat a stamp is to gently tap it on a pigment/craft pad. Keep in mind that the "spongelike" pigment pads do not require as much pressure to ink a stamp as the tougher dye pads. Ink from pigment pads adhere readily as well as transfer easily. If I feel like blending colors or having a "rock and roll" type of effect, I simply daub other colors on a stamp with Clearsnap cat's eye pads or Stampin' Up! craft ink spots. I start with lighter colors (ie. yellow) and work my way to darker colors (ie. red). It's a great way to achieve a multicolored image without using markers or colored pencils to manually add colors. Best of all, pigment ink is easier to clean off than dye ink! You can just use water and give the stamp a good scrub.

"So what does this have to do with Clearsnap?" you may ask. Ever since I was a gradeschooler, I used Colorbox inkpads and Color Cubes when I stamped. I once saved as much money as I could and bought one or two color families worth of pigment ink pads. For a little kid, it was crazy! If you take a look at the wide variety of colors that Clearsnap offers, it would be difficult to list ones they lack. There is more variety than ever with hybrid "chalk" inks, mica, metalextra... and inkpad options varying from Cat's eyes and Queues to Paintboxes and Petalpoint pads. Besides ink, the company carries its own line of interesting stamps. Which came first? ...the Rollagraph or the Stampin' Around? But stampers have gotta hand it to Sterling and Shelli Gardner for acquiring the company in 2006. (Check out http://www.stampinup.com/au/ena/3860_3863.asp) What more could stampers want than to be able to coordinate their inks with paper and accessories in Stampin' Up!?

Asymmetrical Layouts

Synonyms to the term "asymmetric" are: shapeless, oblique, cockeyed, unequal, uneven, unbalanced... but I prefer the general term: different. There are too many things people have to balance in life--checkbooks, eating habits, work and play--but it's nice to squeeze in as much fun as we can. When I design cards, I try to keep in mind how the type, imagery and supporting elements interact with each other, as well as how they create a visually pleasing composition. I love seeing designs in books or websites that have wonderful layouts. They break the monotony of all else.





Today, I have an A2 card (One quarter of an 8.5" x 11") and a trio of 3" x 3" mini cards (which fit perfectly in Stampin' Up! mini square envelopes). All were created with the Polka Dots & Paisley set. Some of the backgrounds were made with the coordinating Polka Dots & Petals set. I cut out different elements from the Petals & Paisleys designer series paper: the tiny paisleys and the stems of some flowers. To add a leaf to the flower on the A2 card, I used my stampin' write marker to color in one of the petals of the "outlined flower" stamp. I tried two ways of creating scalloped edges: first, I used sticky strip along the edge of one card and adhered a row of 1/2" punched circles... then, for one of the 3" x 3" cards, I carefully punched a row of slits. This is one of my favorite punches of all time. It was the first one I purchased from SU! because I knew there were many possibilities. In time, I grew to like many of the others as well.