Father's Day Cards

I've seen the new Stampin' Up! Idea Book and was sad to see that there are no new automotive stamps to speak of. I loved the old now retired Classic Convertibles and Classic Pickups sets, was hoping that they would introduce another stamp set similar to those. There is a new farm themed set with an old 1956 Ford pickup. It has the bed full of apples and a sign on the tailgate; I doubt I buy it since it has such limited use for me. I like classic muscle car and hot rod car stamps since my friends and family are into them. I don't know that they would care for a card with "Fresh Apples" on it  =)

I've used those two Classics stamp sets so much for cards for my dad that this year I decided to make a card with a photo of his show truck on it. The card folds at the top; it is 4 1/4" wide by 5 1/2" tall.

Supplies all from Stampin' Up!:
Basic Black, Whisper White and Metallic Silver cardstock
5/8" black satin ribbon
Whisper White craft ink - to stamp on ribbon, set aside to dry at least 24 hours before handling
Teeny Tiny Wishes stamp set
Texturz plate

The above card I created for my dads birthday earlier this year. It is an easel card, the instructions can be found here:

http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/resources/tutorials/easelcard/

Supplies from Stampin' Up!:
Glossy White, Basic Gray, Basic Black card stock
Basic Black ink
colored pencils
scalloped border punch
white crayon
sponged Going Gray ink over the colored image (Crayon Resist Technique http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/resources/tutorials/crayon_resist/ )
to get a sort of faded, antique look to the colors.

The stamp sets are Classic Convertibles, Classic Pickups, Antique Autos, Highways and Byways background stamp  and Birthday Best , all by Stampin' Up! and all are retired.
The gray satin ribbon was bought elsewhere.

Thanks for looking !

Cute As A Button

One of my favorite creations, made for a cousins baby shower.

Chocolate Chip, Pretty In Pink, Very Vanilla card stock from Stampin' Up!
Chocolate Chip ink, Stampin' Up!
Snap Stamps rubber stamps

button, miniature beads for eyes, craft doll hair, ribbon scraps, actual blush makeup for blush on cheeks

Thanks for looking !

Baby Onesie Card

I know this has been done thousands of times before, but I have never made one. A friend requested that I make a template for her to follow to make it easier for her to create 20 of them. If I made one of these to give, I'd do it slightly differently by adding more detail.

My test sample uses a sheep image from the retired Stampin' Up! set DD Noah stamped with Basic Blank ink. I should have heat embossed the sheep in black. I then colored it in with white dimensional paper paint. The card stock is Bashful Blue from Stampin' Up!

Cut your card stock 4 1/4" x 11". Fold in half to create a 4 1/4" x 5 1/2" card that folds at the top.

I cut in from the sides 5/8 " and 1 5/8" down from the top fold to create the arms. You could change these measurements, it just happens to be where I cut by "eyeballing". I did not have a pattern to follow so I started cutting up scrap paper - the way I normally make things from scratch. The pattern making started with a piece of 4 1/4 x 5 1/2 scrap paper folded in half to give me the center. By creating the center first, when I did my cutting and punching through both layers the left and right side of the onesie would be the same. I flattened out the folded front piece pattern and saw that this idea worked well. That scrap paper pattern can then be traced (or carefully held up to the card while punching), saving time and ensuring that each of the 20 onesies are the same.

Also by using the scrap paper first, I decided it looked a little weird having both layers punched through on the leg openings. I then tried punching a semicircle through the top layer, trimming the bottom layer diagonally across the leg opening with scissors and liked it much better.

The friend wanted to use a punch as she had seen other people do to create the openings, punching through the top and bottom layers at the same time. I used a 1 3/4" punch to create the neck and leg openings.

After punching and trimming I made a dry emboss template out of scrap lightweight cardboard. Use a stylus/empressor tool/dried up ball point pen to emboss the seams. TIP: Rub waxed paper on the back side of your card stock before running the stylus along the template; the stylus will glide better and not be as likely to tear your cardstock.
I detailed the seams with a Bashful Blue Stampin' Write marker from Stampin' Up!

The bottom flap seam should have been higher up, I wasn't thinking when I made it so now the sample looks "off"to me. For the sample I punched brushed silver card stock with a 1/8" punch, glued the tiny dots on to mimic brads. To create mail friendly faux brads, I'd add a little bit of Crystal Effects from Stampin' Up! to make them shine and have more dimension.

Honestly, if I made one of these cards to give to someone special, I would create layers, sponge ink along the edges and use a real sewing machine along the "seams" as well as use real brads or eyelets, more 3D embellishments, etc. I would also cut it from 12x12 card stock, using that extra inch in length to bring up as a real flap closure at the bottom. This is basically a template, test project for my friend. She can add more to this pattern if she likes, but since she needs to create 20 to send out very soon, I imagine she will like the faster, cheaper, mail friendly faux details.

Thanks for looking !

Americana Flag Card

Today was fun, oohing and ahhhing over the new catalog items, sobbing over the loss of some of our favorite colors and items, as well as helping the ladies create projects. I didn't personally complete a project today, I was too busy helping them. I always get flustered when I am helping someone, so many ideas get going through my head, running here and there in the craft dungeon to get what they ask for only to be sidetracked by another idea to share....or as it so happened today, trying to remember exactly which drawer what color of card stock (or a particular stamp set) was now in since I redid my organization system a couple of weeks ago. Since I decided to reorganize the card stock colors in a "rainbow" after having them stored by the Stampin' Up! color families for 10 years, it is going to take a little getting used to.


I will be making a baby onesie card tomorrow to be used as a template at the request of one of the ladies.

In honor of Flag Day, I'm posting this card I created several years ago. This is one of my favorite creations. It was inspired by home decor pieces I saw in a catalog about 10 years ago, created out of old painted and worn wood slats. I thought, "I could make something similar to those out of an old wood pallet perhaps, use it in the yard or on the side of the barn......." I never got around to finding an old pallet to paint, but I did make a miniature version out of popsicle sticks - and a flag card with that idea a couple years later !

I used the retired Stampin' Up background stamp Cracking, Creamy Caramel classic ink, Night of Navy, Baroque Burgundy and Very Vanilla card stock. The Burgundy strips of card stock and Navy rectangle are glued on top of the vanilla. A stylus was useful to create the "slat" look. The star is punched out of sandpaper then painted with acrylic craft paint to resemble rusty tin, mounted on a dimensional (pop dot) . Hemp twine "distressed" with a touch of acrylic paint for the roping.

Thanks for looking !

Strawberry Box

I've been straightening up the mess in my craft dungeon today, staying indoors and avoiding the extreme heat/humidity/thunderstorms. I need to get things in order anyway since I have two ladies coming over tomorrow to stamp - and to look at the new Stampin' Up! Idea Book !!!! This is the first time in a long time anyone has been over to create. I like to share ideas for projects they are working on. They both want masculine ideas - and to raid my stamp collection in search of guy images. One of them also needs fruit ideas, so I found this old strawberry box photograph and diagram.

I stamped Real Red card stock with an Itty Bitty Backgrounds stamp. The Green Galore was stamped with a leaf image from I do not remember which stamp set, I want to say Autumn....... all supplies from Stampin' Up!; the original pattern was found at stampfanci.com several years ago.

Thanks for looking !

Scrapbooking As Wall Art

I created the above project as a contest entry for National Scrapbooking Month in 2009 for Stampin' Up! Demonstrators. I did not win, but the project was posted on the Stampin' Up! Demonstrator web site.

It is a 12x12 scrapbook page framed to hang on the wall - and I repurposed old CDs ! I like to find new ways to use "trash". Chipboard or card stock circles will work, too.　

All of the supplies used were current Stampin' Up! products at the time.


My sample uses the following:
 Bella Rose Designer Series paper
1 full sheet Riding Hood Red designed
1/2 sheet of the large Bella Rose print on Whisper White background
5‐1/2" square of two other patterns

 Chocolate Chip 8‐1/2" x 11" card stock, approximately 1/2 sheet
2‐1/4" x 3‐1/4" for photograph mat
5‐1/2" square

 Riding Hood Red 8‐1/2" x 11" card stock, approximately 1/2 sheet:
2‐1/4" x 3‐1/4" for photograph mat
2‐1/4" x 4‐1/4" for use with Scallop Edge punch
piece for Top Note die


Kiwi Kiss 8‐1/2" x 11" card stock
2 pieces, 2‐1/4" x 3‐1/4" for photograph mats

Whisper White 5/8"satin ribbon: approximately 11"

Riding Hood Red 5/8" striped grosgrain ribbon: approximately 5"

Chocolate Chip 5/8" grosgrain ribbon: approximately 6"

Linen thread (or embroidery floss)

Styled Vanilla Hodgepodge Hardware

Chocolate Chip flower button

Stampin’ Dimensionals

Adhesive of choice (SNAIL, Tombow, 2‐Way Glue)

Sticky Strip (precut and adhere to the back of the chipboard circles)

Circle Scissor Plus or Coluzzle Cutting System

Designer Label punch

Slit punch

Scallop Edge punch

1/16" Circle punch

Paper Snips

Sizzix Big Shot

Top Note Bigz die

Stampin’ Up! Texturz Plates and pads

Glue Dots

Red acrylic crafters’ paint
 
Chipboard circles or 4 old CDs (or card stock circles to create less bulk if you would prefer to use this as a scrapbook page)
 
Sandpaper










After cutting and sanding the Kiwi Kiss (with white polka dots) Designer Series paper, adhere it to the CD or chipboard circle.Wrap the 11" piece of Whisper White 5/8" satin ribbon around the circle so that the ends meet on the front, just off center to the right side. Adhere.Run a small piece of linen thread or embroidery floss through the button, tie in a knot and trim. Adhere to the ribbon with a Glue Dot.Use the Scallop Edge punch on each short side of the 2‐1/4" x 4‐1/4" Riding Hood Red card stock piece.Adhere the 2‐1/4" x 3‐1/4" Chocolate Chip piece on top of the Riding Hood Red scalloped edge piece. Mount on top of the circle using Stampin’ Dimensionals, slightly off center towards the left side.

After running the Chocolate Chip card stock circle through the Big Shot with the “brocade” Texturz plate, adhere it to the CD or chipboard circle.Adhere the 2‐1/4" x 3‐1/4" piece of Kiwi Kiss card stock off center, to the left side.Adhere the 5" piece of Riding Hood Red 5/8" striped grosgrain ribbon.Cut out multiple flowers and leaves from the scrap of Bella Rose Designer Series paper. Adhere using Stampin’ Dimensionals and Tombow Adhesive to create a 3‐D embellishment to the lower right corner.

After cutting and sanding the Chocolate Chip Designer Series paper circle, adhere it to the CD or chipboard circle.After running it through the Big Shot with the polka dot Texturz plate, adhere the Riding Hood Red top note die cut to the circle. Trim.Use the Slit punch on a 2‐1/4" x 3‐1/4" piece of Kiwi Kiss card stock.Punch a hole for the mini brad.Attach a snippet of striped Riding Hood Red 5/8" striped grosgrain ribbon behind the Kiwi Kiss card stock with the brad.Mount the completed Kiwi Kiss piece on top of the circle using Stampin’ Dimensionals.

After cutting, trimming, and sanding the Bella Rose Designer Series paper, adhere it to the CD or chipboard circle.Attach the 2‐1/4" x 3‐1/4" piece of Riding Hood Red card stock to the circle, slightly off center, more to the upper right side.Punch and embellish a piece or scrap of card stock to fit in the label Hodgepodge Hardware.Run the 6" piece of Chocolate Chip 5/8" grosgrain ribbon through the Hodgepodge Hardware. Adhere ends to the backside of the circle.All four circles are complete, ready to be adhered with Sticky Strip to the background piece of Designer Series paper, photographs added, and framed!

Thanks for looking !

My Digital Studio - Halloween Float

Sharing the digital photos yesterday gave me the idea to post my first project that I made with My Digital Studio. It is a paper crafting solution software from Stampin' Up! I like being able to use the premade Designer pages (or totally scrap from scratch as I did with these pages!) for a quick scrapbook page to share online with out of town friends and relatives. I also like that the company continues to offer optional downloads each month (each download price varies). Calendars, scrapbook pages, cards and more can be created with this fun and easy to use software.

Everything used on these scrapbook pages are included in the initial software purchase - I did not use any extra purchased items.

Thanks for looking !

Garden Angel Picket

I made this garden angel several years ago. She was originally an unfinished wood craft picket bought in the craft  supplies section of a large retailer. You could repurpose an old picket !

 I painted and crackled her with acrylic craft paints and crackling medium.

I stamped her with Stampin' Up! rubber stamps (DD Daisy, Mini Mates and Fun Faces all of which are retired) and acrylic craft paints.

A good coat of sealant to help protect her, bent wire for wings, mossy stuff I had in my craft stash for hair and I had a cute addition to my flower bed ! She originally had a little wreath in her "hands" in front of her, but it has long since fallen off and been lost.


Aha, I found a photo of her shortly after she was first made, holding the "wreath". but I noticed the wood "button" nose is missing already.

Thanks for looking =) 

Mini Tin Bucket

My daylillies are in full bloom, prompting me to find this old project to share. The Whisper White card stock was stamped with the now retired Watercolor Garden 2 stamp set, Ruby Red, Only Orange and Garden Green classic ink, detailed with a Basic Black marker. All supplies used were available from Stampin! Up!

These cute little buckets were found at the dollar spot. Easy to embellish in so many ways for quick gifts. I only have two of my bucket projects photographed. The second project was a cute way to give M & Ms: Whisper White cardstock stamped with various Bold Bright classic ink colors and the "M" stamp from the Alphadots stamp set, all items were from Stampin' Up!

The easiest way to make a pattern for the center area, for me, was to roll the center ridges on a water based ink pad or marker, then roll a large piece of scrap paper along the entire bucket. You could also wrap lightweight paper around the bucket then "smoosh" along the ridges to make a slightly raised area showing where the ridges are, where to cut. I then cut along those two lines, actually just to the inside of them a tiny bit to make it slightly smaller.

After you have the pattern cut, be sure to place it onto the bucket to see if you will need to trim for a better fit. Once you are happy with the way the pattern fits, you can trace it onto the card stock or decorative paper you will use for the final project. Stamp, embellish, etc as you desire then adhere to the bucket with super sticky double sided adhesive, such as Sticky Strip from Stampin' Up!

On the daylily bucket project I removed the handle then ran beads onto it. I've also tied on ribbons. These buckets (or repurposed containers, I'll post some of those projects another day) can be done in so many fun ways. How about a "Sports Nut" bucket for guys filled with peanuts and wrapped with sports themed paper ?

Thanks for looking !

Stamping On Fabric

Fast, easy way to embellish a plain piece of fabric, no sewing skills required ! I use acrylic craft paint mixed with fabric medium soaked into a scrap piece of felt on an old plastic lid as my stamp pad.

Wash and dry your fabric first, but do not use fabric softener.

Be sure to place a piece of heavy weight cardboard in between the layers of fabric (such as inside a tshirt) to prevent paint/ink from soaking through to the other side accidentally.

Heat set ink or paint stamped images as required by the manufacturer of the product that you use.

I've made several sweatshirts and tshirts, embellished blue jeans, stampcrafted with blue jeans scraps, stamped fabric liners to baskets, made sachets and soft ornaments. Easy way to repurpose old clothing, such as blue jeans to create new crafts for the bazaar I coordinated years ago. Stamping on fabric can also easily hide a small stain, such as on a tshirt.

You could also add buttons, ribbon, etc to the stamped images once dry.

After cutting off the ribbed trim along the cuffs and collar of the above sweatshirt, I used a thin yarn like fiber to stitch along the the edges to hem them. I stamped the snowflakes with with white acrylic craft paint/fabric medium and the retired Stampin' Up set Snowflakes. The letters are PSX clear stamps (small letters)and Making Memories foam stamps (large letters).

Not a decent photograph at all, it is the only one I have of this project, taken at the last minute before loading up for the bazaar. I stamped scrap pieces of lightweight cream colored fabric with a hybrid ink and several of my favorite retired floral stamp sets from Stampin' Up! I then placed them into plastic embroidery hoops I found at a yard sale. Inexpensive project to donate to the school holiday bazaar.

Yes, that price tag is $1; I tried to keep all of my projects inexpensive so the kids could afford to buy them. They would come in and shop for family members' holiday gifts then we would wrap them. Everything we sold was under $5. It wasn't really a school fundraiser; it was a fun day for the kids - and the parents that helped work it. I was involved with that project for 9 years, coordinator of it for 7. I did the bulk of my crafting during those years, loving every minute of it working on projects year round.

I stamped the liner to this clearance ($2 !) basket with hybrid ink and a Stampin' Up! stamp. I then filled it with dollar spot items that I found on clearance for 50c each ! The entire basket was wrapped with cellophane gift wrap, added a large bow and gift tag.

I can't believe I had this old photograph - the project has since been dismantled. I covered a piece of foam core with batting and lightweight fabric that had been stamped with acrylic craft paints/fabric medium. I attached strips of ribbon then inserted it into an old picture frame I painted to create a memo board.

Another cheap, easy project that I made to donate to the school holiday bazaar: old blue jeans pockets stamped and made into note pad holders. I attach magnets to the back of the pocket then slide a coordinating stamped notepad into the pocket with an ink pen. I thought they were great for lockers.

Thanks for looking !

Paper Cast

I enjoyed making paper cast craft projects years ago. I think I ought to dig out my supplies and make another; they are easy and inexpensive to make (after the initial cost of the supplies)

About 10 years ago there was a floral shop going out of business in a nearby town. At the time I was the coordinator for the elementary school holiday bazaar, always on the lookout for bargains and cheap crafting supplies so I made the 30 minute drive hoping I could find some things to use. I found a couple of things that would work for the bazaar and several shelving units for the garage, but the best bargain was the paper casting supplies I bought for myself. I paid $50 (yikes!) for a box of molds, which at the time were very popular and would have been much more expensive if bought individually. I had so much fun using those molds to create things for the bazaar. I made dozens of framed pieces (one of which hangs on the stairwell wall going to my craft dungeon) and ornaments out of these paper cast molds.

Supplies: fabric (or decorative paper), picture frames, scrap cardboard, spray adhesive, acrylic craft paints, paper casting supplies.

I sandwiched the glass between the frame backing and the artwork in case the purchaser of the piece wanted to reuse the frame for something else. This is an open piece, no glass covering it since the artwork is three dimensional.

Cut the scrap cardboard to fit the frame and apply spray adhesive. Cut the fabric or scrapbook paper to fit and adhere.

Following paper cast instructions, make your art work. Once dry, paint and embellish as you'd like.

Attach the paper cast artwork to the fabric/decorative paper with your favorite adhesive (I used hot glue) then insert into the frame.

Thanks for looking !

Pickup Truck Shaped Gift Box

marker is for photo purposes only, to keep the bed cover up

I do not have step by step photographs for this project or a pattern, sorry. Since I am new to blogging and don't have any recent projects to take step by step photos of, I am posting some of my favorite past projects that I did photograph once complete. I will try to describe how I made them as best I am able.

This was truly a make it as I went along project with absolutely no instructions. I looked at a photo of the truck I wanted to recreate, made a few sketches and just started cutting, adjusting, gluing, etc.

I used metallic gold card stock for the truck, Basic Black card stock for the tires and bed cover "lid" to the truck bed box. Both are from Stampin' Up!

The chrome grille, wheels and mirrors were made with a scrap of silver metallic paper from some packaging my mom gave me, knowing that one day I would probably find a use for it. Perfect that it ended up being used on a project for my dad !

The headlights were cut from old drafting vellum scraps I had in my stash.

The windows are Whipser White card stock from Stampin' Up! that were detailed with Classic Black marker and ink with an aquapainter.

The tires and wheels were both punched out with circle punches. I used a permanent black marker for details on the wheels and grille.

Red indoor/outdoor acrylic craft paint for the stripes.

Aquapainter and classic Black ink for details on the truck body.

The truck is constructed of two side panels, an open top box for the bed, a piece that had been notched along scored fold lines on either side to bend and adhere to the sides creating the hood and cab. Sticky strip and Tombow liquid glue were used to hold the various parts together.

The bedcover is sort of like a box top with one end glued to the back of the cab and cut to make a "hinge". The bed cover lifts up, but still attached to the back of the cab, to reveal the goodies in the bed and a card attached to the underside of the cover.

Thanks for looking !

Faux Tin Heart

I do not have step by step photographs for this project or a pattern, sorry. Since I am new to blogging and don't have any recent projects to take step by step photos of, I am posting some of my favorite past projects that I did photograph once complete. I will try to describe how I made them as best I am able.

This is a little something I came up with for my mom.

If you do not have anything heart shaped to use as a pattern to trace, you can make your own. First, trace the outline of your embossing folder or texturz plate onto a piece of paper to give you the correct size, cut out. Fold this piece of paper in half. Draw half of a heart on the fold, cut out. Open it up for the entire heart shape; you may need to trim it (or as in my case make a totally new pattern!) to look more heart like. Flatten out and trace this heart pattern onto your two pieces of card stock (I used Gold Metallic from Stampin' Up!), cut out. Run the heart pieces through your embossing folder / texturz plate one at a time (I used the Finial Press embossing folder from Stampin' Up!).

After your heart pieces are embossed, you can apply paint to "antique" them. I quickly brushed on cream acrylic craft paint, I wasn't concerned about total coverage. After the cream paint dried I dabbed my finger into gold metallic craft paint and rubbed it over the raised areas of the embossed design on the heart. Once again, not looking for total coverage, I wanted a sort of worn, vintage look. After both pieces were dry I glued the two straight edges down to the point together with sticky strip, this creates the pocket. I hot glued gold organdy ribbon (retired from Stampin' Up!) and bows to make the "hanger".

The "flowers" were created with popsicle sticks, Real Red Cardstock (Stampin' Up!), scalloped circle punch (Stampin' Up!), retired Stampin' Up! stamp set , Encore Gold metallic ink (Stampin' Up!). I used a dab of low temp hot melt glue to adhere the chocolates to the flowers.

The faux hankie was created by punching the edge of lightweight paper with the Eyelet Border Punch from Stampin' Up! then lightly rubbing on Creamy Caramel classic ink (also from Stampin' Up!).

Thanks for looking !

Punched Tin

Many years ago I painted and punched old coffee cans to use as a sort of luminaria. Fill them with water then put them in the freezer. Once they are frozen solid, it is easy to hammer nails through the sides to make designs. You'll want to do this outdoors and keep a heavy old towel underneath to keep it from rolling around as much as well as to catch the melting ice. Paint them if desired, add a candle and you have a luminaria !

The set I made , and no longer have nor do I have photographs of, were red, white , blue and 4th of July themed: the holes I punched were supposed to resemble fireworks.

I used this old idea to make the "vintage" tin pop up card thingy pictured above from an empty gum container. In this case, I stamped an image using StazOn ink first to use as a guide for punching. After it was punched I painted, crackled, antiqued and embellished the container with old buttons.

This particular project was entered in a contest at soshelli.com; it did not win.

Thanks for looking !