Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Winter Wonderland event...

Starting tomorrow, Pink Paislee is holding a Winter Wonderland event right on their blog, it will be chock full of fun projects for the holidays with full instructions, giveaways, etc for you!
You won't want to miss it. Check back to the blog daily for inspiration and your chance to win!
We are featuring the Snow Day line by Pink Paislee for this event. I made some ornaments for the blog, so I can't show you those yet, but here is a little peek at a "Get Well" card made with this adorable line! I used one of the papers for the background and sprayed it with Silver Sugar Glimmer Mist by Tattered Angels, then added lots of die cuts from the Snow Day - Ephemera package!
Some of the die cut frames are layered, then I printed out the sentiment with my computer on this graph paper, cut it out and added it to my card. I was inspired by the "cough syrup" die cut for a Get Well card. After printing out the sentiments on graph paper, I adhered them to the card front. The lines make it easy to line it up nice and straight.
A couple of the elements are popped up with dimensional adhesive, just to give it some life. The twine is from Scrap Pantry. The font I used is called Typewriter. Not sure where I downloaded it from, but it was free. I never pay for my fonts!
Anyway, I hope this whets your whistle and gets you excited for the blog event! I can't wait to see what the girls came up with. See you there. xo

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

confetti love...

Good morning, everyone!

I know I've been gone much too long. Thanksgiving week was crazy, but nice to spend some much needed family time! My husband has been off for about a week now, and the past couple of days we've been putting hard wood floors in the bedrooms upstairs. He taught me how to use the table saw, so I'm the runner -- I go up and down the stairs cutting all of the boards on the ends, while he nails them in! This is our second room we've done together, so we've got a good technique going! One more room to go, which will probably be done on the Christmas break.

I have a couple of scrappy things today. First I wanted to send you on over to the Little Yellow Bicycle blog. They've asked me to make a few things with their new Hello Fall! line, and it's scrumptious! I've been loving confetti lately, so I had to go to town with my punches and try something new. Can you imagine this on a layout? Love! Hop on over to see a couple of projects. I'll have a couple more to share with you next week.

Also, I need to choose two winners for the Scrappantry twine giveaway!

Here are your random numbers:
22
61
Timestamp: 2011-11-29 14:17:35 UTC

Congrats to:
famillemarleau said... 22
They're all beautiful cards. Great ideas. The one that I would most likely do is the one with dry emboss, I love doing it. So it would be the Happy Holiday card. Thanks for the chance, Johanne L.
and
Dee Rose said... 61
Great article and lovely cards, as always! The pocket card is definitely the most like something that I would make and send. Thanks so much for a chance to win; I absolutely LOVE twine. Have a wonderful thanksgiving.
Please send me your mailing addresses to dflanders71@hotmail.com!

Monday, November 21, 2011

Ella fun...


Recently, Ella Publishing asked me to write up an article on tips for making assembly line Christmas cards. They have free E-zine articles, free blog posts with tips and tricks, and inexpensive E-books you can purchase related to scrapbooking, photography and much more.

Would you like a few tips on creating fast and fabulous holiday cards? Visit the Ella Ezine to see five card samples to help you on your way to creating them! Here are a couple of my samples for the E-zine:
On this first card, I simply stamped the Background Basics: Houndstooth background, added a strip of kraft cardstock, tied the twine on. Then I die cut a Damask Snowflake and stamped the JOY from the 2011 Holiday Tags.
Not too difficult, right? I love the look of the gray houndstooth with the red and white!

On this card, I stamped the floral stitches from the Stitches & Swirls set, then I wanted to add a sentiment over the top, so I needed something solid to stamp on. I cut a "Holiday Photo Finishers" strip from kraft cardstock. I stamped peace on it with True Black ink.
Last, I cut the Holly Jolly die from Pure Poppy felt.
(Full supply lists can be found at Ella.)

Who doesn't like a good giveaway? I hope to have these on a regular basis on my blog. After all, I want you to have a good time visiting me! I love to be able to give back to my readers.

Please visit the Ella site to read the article, then come back here and leave a comment for your chance to win some of this beautiful twine like I used on the JOY card, courtesy of Scrappantry on Etsy! Two winners will be chosen, one to receive a set of Vintage Twine (9 colors - 90 yards total) and another winner to receive some Divine Twine (10 colors - 100 yards total).

Which card can you see yourself making out of the five in the article?

Thursday, November 17, 2011

Deck the Halls giveaway...

Would you like a sneak peek to Melissa Frances' new embellishments for the Deck the Halls line? Stop over to the Melissa Frances blog and see a video she made herself and comment for your chance to win! One of my favorite new things are the glass bells you can decorate. Yummy! Check out these gorgeous Deck the Halls ornaments too...
(beautiful Deck the Halls ornaments by Melissa Phillips)

Such beautiful things you can make with these products!

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Pink Paislee + Core'dinations...

All this week on the Pink Paislee blog, we will be showcasing projects that combine the Core’dinations cardstock patterns with Pink Paislee papers and embellishments! Did you know Core’dinations makes cardstock to match our lines? We call it our Modern Prints collection and the colors and patterns are a must have this season!

Here are a few sneaks to my projects...
I managed to squeak in some Nantucket papers and a Nantucket Trading card, a Phantom stamp on the red circles, Butterfly Garden Ephemera, Baubles and Press Ons! Quite a combo, but it all works with this cardstock! :)
Head on over to the Pink Paislee blog for your chance to win, and don't forget to come back each day for more chances to win! You can check out the Core'dinations blog as well for more inspiration!

Monday, November 14, 2011

November release projects...

I have good news for the Papertrey Ink fans out there! We are going to be sharing our cards and projects for each month on the 14th now instead of the 15th! Yay! This way you will see our projects in time to order all of the fun products and see them in use. We love to enable you. LOL!

Here are some cards made with two new sets called Tiny Tags II and Birthdays By the Numbers...
On this card, I cut out a Mega Mat Stack 1 to slide into the pocket to hold the greeting! Great for a money card. You could clip the money onto the Mat Stack piece, so it doesn't get lost!

(The font in "happy" is exactly like the Wonderful Words dies that came out a month or two ago! I can't wait to use these birthday stamps with the cut out words that match.)

Birthday Wishes card:
Stamps: Birthday By The Numbers, Flower Fusion #10 (red circles), Tiny Tags II (a gift for you and stars)
Ink: Spring Moss, Ripe Avocado, Summer Sunshine, Pure Poppy
Paper: White cardstock, Aqua Mist cardstock
Dies: Mega Mat Stack 1, and star punch by Fiskars, Pinking Shears Border die
Other: Papertrey Ink twine
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On the 1st Birthday card, I stamped the stars first, then added the cupcake stamping over the top. Fun card for any age! I love the numbers in the set and want to play around with them some more. Very versatile set!

1st Birthday card:
Stamps: Birthday by the Numbers, Tiny Tags II
Ink: True Black, Pure Poppy, yellow and pink are by JBS
Paper: Studio Calico, white cardstock
Dies: Pinking Shears Border die, Tiny Tags dies, circle punch
Other: Papertrey Ink twine
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This one's made with a new set called Willow. I stamped the center leaves in a lighter green, Spring Moss, and then the other ones in Ripe Avocado and added some punched hearts.

Love of Those Around You card:
Stamps: Willow
Ink: Spring Moss, Ripe Avocado, Pure Poppy
Paper: Pure Poppy and Fine Linen cardstock, text paper by Pink Paislee, 
polkadot by October Afternoon
Dies: heart punch
Other: twine, Melissa Frances pearl.
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This one is made with Tag-its #10 (circles and birthday) and Birthdays By The Numbers (happy). I wanted to experiment with making my own "tape". It's not really tape, but actually some tissue paper that I trimmed and adhered to appear as if it's taping my project together.
I punched out a star and backed it with some pretty papers. The little V's are just part of the star punched out around the edges.
Happy Happy Birthday card:
Stamps: Tag-its#10, Birthdays By The Numbers
Ink: Pure Poppy, True Black, Ripe Avocado
Paper: Raspberry Fizz and Aqua Mist cardstock, October Afternoon floral paper
Dies: star punch
Other: Tissue paper by Pink Paislee (green).
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This quick card is made with Mega Mehndi Medallion (center), Stitches & Swirls (stitches) and Tiny Tags II (heart).
I stamped the Mehndi Medallion on Hawaiian Shores cardstock with Fresh Snow ink and backed it with some Papertrey Ink felt.
Hello card:
Stamps: Tiny Tags II, Mega Mehndi Medallion, Stitches & Swirls
Ink: Hawaiian Shores, Fresh Snow, Spring Moss
Paper: Hawaiian Shores cardstock, white cardstock
Dies: 2" circle punch
Other: PTI felt, ribbon, pinking shears to trim felt around circle. 
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Jingle All the Way is made with Winter Penguin and Background Basics: Circles. I cut a Damask Snowflake and stamped a circle snowflake inside from Winter Penguin.

Jingle All The Way card:
Stamps: Winter Penguin, Background Basics: Circles
Ink: Pure Poppy, Hawaiian Shores, True Black
Paper: Raspberry Fizz, Hawaiian Shores cardstock
Dies: Damask Snowflakes
Other: bell, PTI twine.
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This one is made with Winter Penguin stamps and dies. I first embossed the white cardstock with the new Peace Be Still Impression Plate, then cut out a Damask Snowflake die from it.
I added some Diamond Dust all the way around the snowflake and on the penguin, which is hard to see here, but so cute in real life! The tinsel adds a fun wintery sparkle too!
 Let It Snow card:
Stamps: Winter Penguin
Ink: True Black
Paper: White cardstock, blue paper by Studio Calico
Dies: Damask Snowflakes, Peace Be Still Impression Plate, Winter Penguin
Other: Maya Road ribbon (green) PTI ribbon (lavender), Melissa Frances tinsel 
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Visit the Papertrey Ink design team gallery to see more creations by the team, and happy shopping!

Sunday, November 13, 2011

Stitches & Swirls...

Hello, the Papertrey Ink girls are showcasing a new stamp set today called Stitches & Swirls!

As a quilter, I was inspired by this set to "stamp and stitch", so I chose a few of the images, stamped them with Pure Poppy ink and stitched away with red thread. This stamp set reminded me of Redwork! Have you heard of Redwork?
Redwork is an older form of embroidery which uses red floss to trace simple line drawings. Muslin squares were sold with the patterns marked for a penny each. These then could be used as quilt blocks with sashing added around the borders. Redwork was also used to embellish tea towels, aprons, pillow covers, splashers and other Victorian decorations, and were usually done in animal themes, children's themes, nature and kitchen themes.

First, I stamped the image on white cardstock. My needle is threaded with 2 stands of red thread and tied in a knot at the end. I didn't poke a hole at EVERY stitch on the stamped image, because the stitches are super small and it would have taken me forever to do all of those. So I poked a hole about every other stitch. When doing sharp turns, you'll have to poke holes more often and make the stitches smaller. Here is a shot in progress:

Now I'll admit, this technique is time consuming! But something you can do while watching TV or listening to music! Wouldn't a set of these cards be a nice gift? You could also do this on fabric and frame it, or make these into a pillow or quilt. The possibilities are really endless!

When I run out of thread, I tape the end to the back and start with another piece of floss right where I left off. You'll end up with messy threads inside like this. I just cut another piece of white cardstock and adhered it to the inside cover to hide the stitching...

I was afraid to stamp a sentiment DIRECTLY onto my card - after all that time I spent stitching! I didn't want to mess up with the stamping and have to start completely over. So I stamped some sentiments from a new set called Willow onto a strip of white cardstock and attached it to my card.
I love Redwork...I actually bought 2 pillows for my daughter's bed a long time ago that have Redwork on them!
Stitched card set:
Stamps: Stitches & Swirls, Willow
Ink: Pure Poppy, Smokey Shadow
Paper: white cardstock
Dies: none
Other: red thread, Melissa Frances pearls.
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If you'd like to try this technique in a smaller scale, pick a smaller floral image from the set like I did here and give it a whirl...
This is stamped onto a deep purple cardstock and stitched with white floss. I left the center flower not stitched, I only stitched the inside of the flower petals and the leaves.



Good Heavens card:
Stamps: Stitches & Glory Be
Ink: Fresh Snow, True Black
Paper: Nantucket by Pink Paislee, purple cardstock by PTI
Dies: Pinking Shears Border Die
Other: ribbon by Papertrey Ink, chipboard by Studio Calico, pin by LYB, 
lace unknown, resin flower unknown, Melissa Frances pearl.
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Thank you for visiting me today! Stitches & Swirls will be available on the 15th at Papertrey Ink. Please visit the other girls to see what they've made with this stamp set also!

Saturday, November 12, 2011

Door To Door...

Welcome to the Papertrey Ink group blog post featuring a new stamp set and dies called Door to Door! This set is so much fun to play around with. Included are stamps for all kinds of occasions and dies to add neat accessories- like banners, urns, wreaths, pumpkins, flowers, ETC!

I used the set for Christmas and create an interactive holiday gift card, complete with bow for hanging on the tree. I love to hang my gift cards on the tree, so they don't get lost under the tree with all of the presents.

There is a little die that lets you create these open doors to create an interactive piece to your card!
When the doors open, the inside is decorated with the stamp set, and I wrote a to/from inside for the recipient.

I'll show you a little bit about how I created this!
The first thing I did was cut the doors out with the door die on white cardstock. Then stamped the doors, roof and urns.

Next, I stamped the greenery and chalked in parts of the card with brown chalk. I colored the little dots on the greenery with a red marker.

I cut out the banner die, stamped the banner and colored it in, then stamped the saying and added it to my door.
I had to cut the banner in the center where the doors open. Or you could put the banner up higher, like I did here on my sample. Oops, I see that I stamped my doors upside down. :)
I trimmed this piece down and placed it on a folded piece of new Holiday Flourishes & Swirls patterned  paper pad by Heather Nichols. I sewed up the sides and distressed the edges. Added a ribbon for hanging. To do this, tie a bow, leave one long end to wrap around to the back. Adhere. This creates the loop to hang your card on the tree.

Last, I added pearls for the door knobs and Diamond Dust glitter for a frosty, wintery feel. I punched out a little notch at the top with a circle punch. Don't forget to stamp the wreath inside the doors and add a to/from.
Now add a gift card inside the pocket and hang it on your tree!

Door To Door Gift Card Holder:
Stamps: Door To Door
Ink: Dark Chocolate, Spring Moss, Ripe Avocado
Paper: white cardstock and Holiday Flourishes & Swirls patterned 
paper pad by Heather Nichols
Dies: Door To Door
Other: ribbon by Papertrey Ink, chalk, red marker, Diamond Dust glitter. 
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Visit the other girls to see what they've made with this set also!