Country Home-Fun Fact Friday

You might be wondering what about this card has anything to do with the Country Home stamp set.  Well, the saying is from the set.  I wanted to find some way to make a Christmas card.

My accent piece is made using the Starburst punch, and the Everyday label punch.  I like to find ways to layer these great punches.

The leaves are made with the leaf, and sprig punch.  I made a couple of leaves using some of the Vellum Card stock.  I got that idea from several of the Paper Pumpkin kits I have been making up lately.  

I have such fun figuring out what cards to feature each week on this blog.  If you enjoy what I have written, please like this page, and share it with your friends.  You can also sign up to be informed each time I post on the blog.  

Next week I will be featuring 2 stamp sets, and thinlits that coordinate with them.  These will be available to purchase the month of November.  Lots of snowflakes, and a seasonal set.  Fun!

Busy as a bee getting ready for tonight's Open House.

Till next week,
Have a wonderful weekend,
Sushi

Product List

Festive Farmhouse 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 Cm) Designer Series Paper [147820] $11.00	Country Home Photopolymer Stamp Set [147678] $21.00	Leaf Punch [144667] $16.00	Sprig Punch [148012] $18.00
Starburst Punch [143717] $18.00	Everyday Label Punch [144668] $18.00	Vellum 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock [101856] $9.00	Mossy Meadow 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [133676] $8.50
Cherry Cobbler 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock [119685] $8.50	Very Vanilla 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock [101650] $9.75	Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad [132708] $6.00	Cherry Cobbler Classic Stampin' Pad [147083] $7.50
Stamping Sponges [141337] $3.50

Christmas Through the Year-Stamparatus

  I was contacted by Cedar Hurst, a local assisted living facility, to see if I would be willing to come and hold a card class for the ladies (I have tried but none of the men will come.) I have been going for about 3 months now and came up with some card guidelines.

1. The ladies have a hard time punching so I pre-punch all shapes.

2. If they are going to stamp an image it needs to be done on a separate piece of paper in case of stamping errors.  The paper can be turned over, or a new piece can be added.

3. Simple is best.

I designed today's card and thought I would try the Stamparatus.  I have 2 of them and was so excited when each lady had a perfectly stamped card.  They loved it and did not mind any wait they might have.

Stamparatus is easy and fast when you want to stamp multiples of the same card. Great if you have one design you want to stamp for Christmas cards.

I don't usually post with stamps that are retired, but wanted to show a card that was made with the Stamparatus.

Come back tomorrow for another Christmas card, made with Painted Harvest.  How can a sunflower be stamped for Christmas you might wonder?  Check out how easy that is tomorrow.

Not sure what it is like in your state, but here is Illinois it is very humid.  I am glad to be inside catching up on my stamping instead of outside taking a walk.

Happy Stamping,
Sushi

Product List

Stamparatus [146276] $49.00

Merry Mistletoe Clear-Mount Stamp Set [143655] $19.00

Christmas Through the Year-Designer paper

 Greetings,
I got home last night from a wonderful family reunion.  I was able to see all my siblings except for my sister who lives in Oregon, all my children except Chris who lives in St.Louis, and 5 of my grandchildren.  We had wonderful weather, lots of games, visits to amazing places, great food and lots of good times celebrating each other.

This week I am focusing on Christmas cards, Christmas in July.  I have a monthly class I have held for about 4 years called Christmas Through the Year.  Each month people make 3 cards from the same design for $5.00.  At the end of the year they have 36 handmade cards ready to go.  I learned about this class idea at a Stampin'Up! convention several years ago from a demonstrator who was in her 80's.  

Today's card is a great way to use up little scraps of designer paper. It was very easy to create.  Even though I used last catalog's Christmas paper, it would be easy to duplicate this design with this year's paper.

Tomorrow I will share a card I featured at the Christmas class, and at a local assisted living facility.  Everyone was able to have a great looking card because they used the Stamparatus for exact stamping.

It is great to be back home and stamping again.
Sushi




Product List

Christmas Pines Photopolymer Stamp Set [142049] $35.00

Snowflake Sentiments-WOW card

  Why do I call this a WOW card?

1. The white background is made using Dazzling Diamonds Glimmer card stock.  The glitter on the background makes is a WOW.

2. The intricate Soft Sky snowflakes on top of the background are so delicate looking, they make the card look difficult to put together and therefore are a WOW.

3. The simple color scheme of blue and white say WOW to me.

Tomorrow I will show you two more cards made using this set that have an entirely different look to them. Check it out tomorrow.

Snowflake Sentiments-Simple Card

  These are the framelits that coordinate with the Snowflake Sentiments stamp set.  I first noticed the large snowflake border and the dotted border and did not notice the other items as much, like the tiny snowflakes, the swirl, and the line of dots.  When I sat down to play with the set I wanted to make sure I used everything offered and then found out what fun all these items are to use. 

  I wanted to start out with a simple card.

This will be my December Christmas Through the Year card.  

 The dotted border is a great framelit.  It is just a single dotted scallop that can be as long as you wish.  First decide your paper length and then lay the scallop on the top edge.  It doesn't show on my card but mine is placed on a piece of Dazzling Diamond glimmer paper.

  As I often say, simple can be elegant.

Tomorrow I will showcase a sample using the block stamping technique.

Night in Bethlehem-Stencil technique

  Have you ever sponged using a stencil?  To make this card I first used the Big Shot to cut out one of the city layouts.

1. Lay the cut out image over your whisper white card stock.

2. Start with your lightest color and gently sponge over the cut out. I used Fresh Fig.

3. Next choose a darker color and sponge once more making sure to keep the cut out on the paper. I used Dapper Denim.

4. The third color should be the darkest yet.  As you sponge each color try to blend a little with the previous color so there is not a sharp line. My final color was Night of Navy.

5. Allow the ink to dry a bit and then using versa mark, stamp the star in the sky and emboss with gold embossing powder. 

This was a very simple card to make but very elegant when finished.  I have swapped this card in several of my stamping events.  The latest was at OnStage.  This was also the Christmas Through the Year card for November. 

At Christmas Through the Year the stampers make 3 cards of the same design for $5.  The class meets every month so by the end of the year attendees have 36 handmade Christmas cards ready to be mailed.

Tomorrow I will share a framed art picture that I made to display at the Holiday Catalog launch I was a part of in early October.  Look for information about a Occasions and Sale a Bration catalog launch at the end of January.

Night in Bethlehem-Cards

  Aren't the framelits in the Night in Bethlehem bundle outstanding?  I loved them as soon as I saw them in the Holiday catalog.  Did you know the Holiday catalog is still current until January 3rd?

Here are two cards I made using these framelits.

 I love how you do not need much other than the framelits and a simple saying to make a great looking card.  There are two Bethlehem cities to choose from.  One is a little longer at the bottom than the other. I chose the shorter one for this card.

Basic Black for the city
Black ink for Mary and Joseph and the saying
Gold foil for the star

I made this as a sample for our Holiday Launch party, but now am anxious to mail it to a special friend.

How about a card where the city is white instead of black?

I sponged several colors I thought would look good as a night sky.  I embossed the saying in black embossing powdered.

The city has been cut out using both cityscapes and whisper white card stock.  The star has also been cut out with whisper white.

Isn't it amazing how changing up the background and the color of the framelit makes the card look so much different.

Tomorrow I will show you one of my swap cards for OnStage where I used the city in a totally different way.

Labels to Love-Another Christmas Card

Can you see how I created a card with a bit more detail than yesterday's card?

1. I added two different designer papers as a background.

2. Ribbon and mini sequins stepped the card up a bit and added some bling.

3. Instead of a foil snowflake I added a doily.

Small changes can make a simple card a little more detailed.

Come back tomorrow to see a card that could be given for New Years or any event that begins a new year.

Check back later on today for some information on how to register for the Stampamajig..

Labels to Love-Christmas

  This stamp set makes creating cards pretty easy because the stamp is the focal point of the card. I colored the label with markers so that I could get several colors on the stamp at the same time.  Do you know how to do that?  

1. Ink the back of the stamp set with different colored markers.

2. Huff on the back of the stamp (blow on it to make sure the ink is moist). I remember at one Stampin'Up! event they called it doing the Darth Vader.  It does sound like that doesn't it.

3. Stamp your image on card stock.

Supplies

Foil Snowflakes
Holly embossing folder
Christmas Around the World designer paper
Real Red card stock
Markers 

Come back later today for more information about the Stamparatus and tomorrow to see how the stamp set Labels to Love can be used in a different way for Christmas.

Eclipse card-Night in Bethlehem

  I found an example of this card on Pinterest and fell in love with it. The city of Bethlehem is faintly stamped in the background.

One of the great things about stamping your background before cutting out your letters is that it is so easy to place your letters correctly into the slot.  The stamping makes it easy to line them up.  In case there are multiple letters like the word Fall, it is still quite easy to line up the letters.

You can pop up your letters with anything you have on had, but the easiest thing to use are the foam adhesive strips.  The are just the right width to fit any of the letters.

My favorite letters to use are the Large Letter Framelits from the annual catalog.  They are $99.  If you have a bunch of friends over for a party and the party can total $450 or more you can purchase them half price.
Better yet, if you join my team you can purchase them as part of your start up bundle.  You are able to order $125 worth of supplies for just $99. Contact me if you are interested in joining the Super Snails.

Tomorrow is my last card showing the Eclipse technique. 

Carols of Christmas-Template Thursday

  This is my template for the week...

1. Card stock base Crumb Cake
2. Designer paper layer Woodgrain designer paper stack
3. Designer paper strip Be Merry designer paper
4. Saying from Carols of Christmas
5. Tiny accent From Carols of Christmas and cut out with coordinating framelit.

 You can see how I used the same template, just varied the saying, the tiny accent and the colors of the designer paper.  The card base is Cherry Cobbler.

  Same template, just used Garden Green as the card base and varied the designer paper and accent that I used.  I think I could have gone on and on and designed more cards with this template.  It would work with any stamp set and coordinating designer paper.  Try this out for yourself and see what you can come up with.

  For Fix it Friday I will show how using the stamp alone creates a great card, but you can really step it up with you cut out your image with a Big shot.

Carols of Christmas-Wednesday Wow

  Why did I pick this card as my WOW card?

1. The Fresh Fig color is not a typical Christmas color.

2. The ornaments are cut out with the Big Shot and even though they are stamped as a group, they are able to be separated.

3. The string the ornaments are hanging from give this card a very different look.


I found a card very similar on Pinterest and posted by Karen Robinson, who runs a blog called little-paper-party.com.  Thanks Karen, for a great new color idea.

 Tomorrow I will show you how to take one look and turn it into something that can be used with a lot of cards.

Carols of Christmas-Technique Tuesday

Are you curious about the background of this card?  It could be designer paper but is not.  I made a stencil using two of the framelits that coordinate with the stamp set.

  Then I sponged in each tree until it created the desired background for the card.  I think I will have to try this with other stamp sets because I enjoyed the look it created. Today is the first day that you can order this bundle for yourself.  Contact me if you are interested or have any questions and I will be glad to help you out.

  The card I am featuring tomorrow will use unusual Christmas colors and several other features of this stamp set.  Come back to see what it looks like.

Carols of Christmas-Miscellaneous Monday

  Do you love Christmas as much as I do?  I have a Christmas Through the Year card class each month.  I create one design and the stampers who attend the class make 3 cards from that design.  When the year is over they have 36 hand made Christmas cards to send to friends and family.  Fun!
  This set called Carols of Christmas is from the new soon to be active Holiday Catalog.  The great thing about this set is that it can be ordered in August.  This is a great way to get started on making your Christmas cards, and for me a great way to get a new design into the hands of my stampers.
  We made this card at one of my Butterfly Friends meetings with Robin.  I love all the parts of the bundle that are used in this card.  Tomorrow I will show you how I created a stencil from the framelits that match this set and used it in another great Christmas card.

Candy Cane Lane designer paper-Template Thursday

What a simple way to make some cute Christmas cards.

1. Use the White Cards and Envelope pack for the card base. 

2. Choose one of the colors from the designer paper for an accent color.  I chose Crumb Cake.

3. Cut 3 houses from the designer paper.

4. Punch a circle and make a band from 2 coordinating papers.

5. Find a saying to use on each card.

You can easily make 20 Christmas cards ready to send.

Come back tomorrow to see how to fix up a simple card and make it a little bit fancier.

Candy Cane Lane designer paper-Wednesday Wow

  When I saw a card similar to this on Pinterest I thought how clever and knew then I wanted to make one for myself.  These cute little cookie images are found on one of the sheets of the designer paper.  The cookie sheet is made using the next to largest label from the Lots of Labels framelit set.  Isn't this so cute.  This will be the Christmas card by Christmas Through the Year group will make this month.

Come back tomorrow to see a simple template that can be used to make oodles of Christmas cards.
 

Candy Cane Lane designer paper-Technique Tuesday

   I made this card at the Shoebox Swap in Madison.  The card was designed by fellow Butterfly Friend, Susan.  In case you have never heard of this technique it is called the double z fold.  You can see how it uses a lot of the Candy Cane Lane designer paper.

   Come back tomorrow to see a very creative way to use this paper.

Candy Cane Lane designer paper-Miscellaneous Monday

As you know, I love using designer paper on my cards.  Well, this paper called Candy Cane Lane is full of cute little images.  When I ordered the paper I decided not to order the matching stamp set and just use the paper for my cards.

This was a swap I got at OnStage where the creator cut out the cute little  house and made that the high point of the card.

Come back tomorrow to see a sample of a double z card using this same designer paper.

OnStage 2016 swap

What is there about white and a color that makes the card be one of my favorites?  Maybe it is because I am old enough that all the pictures I have of my childhood are black and white.  I really think it is the great contrast that makes them pop and makes them my favorites.

1. The basic color is Night of Navy, always has been a favorite.

2. The layers of contrasting colors make the center accent piece really pop.

3. Anything that is a silhouette is a favorite image.

Hasn't this been fun.  I have lots more cards the I swapped or made and am set for Christmas with ideas to share.  Come back next week to see what card I will feature.  Have a great weekend. And Happy Stamping.

OnStage 2016 swaps

Isn't this so cute?  Susan who has been a demonstrator under a year created this card for her swap.  I love it and will feature it as one of my Christmas Through the Year cards.  

1. The card does not need much on it because the fox is so cute.

2. The use of just two basic colors adds to the simpleness of the card.

3. Love the use of Swirly Birds for the snow feature.

4. The random polka dots of the designer paper make it look like a small snowstorm and just tie the card together.

Come back tomorrow to see the card that was the first to jump out at me from all my swaps.