Sprinkles in Circles?

Have you ever wondered what you could do with Stampin Up's background stamps besides use them for backgrounds? Well, I was looking at my Sprinkles stamp set, and asked myself this very question. For those of you who know me well, I am all about getting as much bang for your buck as possible. So, the following card is what my brain came up with this evening:





















I figure that you will either love it, or hate it. Hopefully you will love it. I was in the mood for circles and bright colors. So every color used here is from Stampin Up's Bold Brights color group.
First I stamped two of the stamps with some Bold Brights ink onto Whisper White card stock., then I punched parts of them out with circle punches. Punch size and shapes do not matter, I happened to choose circles. Then I adhered them off center to plain colored card stock. The next thing that I did was to place them randomly on the right side of my Green Galore card base. I purposely put some over the edge of the card base, then cut them off using the card base as a guide. I then decided to add the cut pieces to the card, why waste them? Then I stamped the sentiment by coloring the stamp with SU Brilliant Blue marker one word at a time, so that I could space them apart. Remember if you do this, clean the stamp after stamping each word.
I almost left it at that, but I was in the mood to color, so I did. That about sums it up. I will list the colors used below just in case anyone viewing is new to Stampin Up's colors.

Colors Used:
Brilliant Blue, Tempting Turquoise, Pink Passion, Lovely Lilac, Green Galore.

Blessings, Lisa

Altered Photo Brag Book

Hello. I was in my local Big Lots store one day to buy some bargains that I needed and I found some photo brag books that I thought I could alter because the front and back covers were removable. I thought that I could give them as gifts to family with my daughter's photos in them, or to take to Stampin Up workshops with card samples in them; etc..... The other great thing about them too was that the covers that I removed had very vibrant colors on them, that could be used later on for the Faux Cloisonne` technique. I used the stamp set "Great Friend" from the current Stampin Up Mini catalog. Here is a photo of the altered front cover:

The base is So Saffron, and I made my own background paper out of it, by stamping the stem and leaf stamp from "Great Friend" in bleach, then on the card stock. Click on the photo to enlarge if you can't see it very well. Then, I cut a Top Note out of Night of Navy card stock. I also had cut one out of Whisper White, and all along the edge, there is a perforation approx 1/8" thick, so I cut all along that perforation, then mounted it onto the Navy Top Note. Next I stamped the stem and leaf along the bottom, stamping it two times each time I inked it up, which is how I got the lighter images. The two butterflies were stamped on Whisper White and cut out. I added some teeny tiny faux pearls for their bodies, and adhered them with some foam dimensionals. Then I stamped the friend sentiment by coloring only the word "friend" on the sentiment stamp (with SU marker) that comes with that stamp set.

Now, the back cover is kind of the opposite, I used Whisper White as the base, and stamped the leaf and butterflies randomly in So Saffron and Night of Navy ink. Here is a photo of that:

Here is a close-up photo of one of the butterflies from the front cover:

Last, but not least, I have to show you a photo of the gorgeous covers in all of the albums. I will be creating something with them in the near future with the Faux Cloisonne` technique.

Before I go, Please keep reading.......this is very important!!!!!!! I am sure you have heard me mention a friend of mine (who also has a blog - Understand Blue); Lydia Fiedler. Well, she is a huge animal lover like myself. She had the awesome opportunity to design a cat stamp for a charity. She has a link on her blog to where you can go to order one, and tell you about the charity. The link is on her side bar with the words "Buy a Stamp, Help a Cat". So, first click on her blog link above in the parenthesis, then click on her side bar link, then buy her too cute black kitty stamp. DO IT! NOW! Yes, I am being pushy, go with it!

I can't wait until I get mine in the mail, and I will be sure to post at least one creation with it! Lydia, has said that she will be posting creations made with it as well, as soon as her stamp arrives too. Ok, I am done. I am off to browse my favorite blogs and then go to bed. Have a great Wednesday!

Blessings, Lisa

Back to the Basics

I said that because the card that I am sharing today, was one that I prepared for one of my first workshops when I first signed up to be a Stampin Up demo, and it also included the first coloring technique that I learned when I first started using Stampin Up projects........Coloring with pastels. I am having a super busy week, and so I apologize that I had to go back to my archives and dig up this card for you. Hopefully you will like it anyways. Remember the stamp set Winged Things from Stampin Up? I think they retired it 2-3 years ago. I will probably never let this one go, I love it.

Ok, the first thing that I did, was to load my wheel handle with my Pretty in Pink ink, and the wheel that coordinates with this stamp set, and ran it straight up the right side of the Pretty in Pink card stock. It may be kind of hard to see in the photo. Sorry. Next, I tore the card stock a wee bit on the front side of the card base, scored and folded the torn side back to reveal the wheeled edge, and used adhesive to hold it back of course. The the image was stamped in Basic Black ink on Whisper White card stock, and colored with pastels (chalks). Then it was cut into a square, mounted onto Mellow Moss card stock, and adhered to the card base. Finally, the sentiment is stamped in Basic Black ink. Was that simple or what?

I used this card to show you not only because I have been short on stamping time the past few days, but also to remind you to resurrect those old stamp sets that are retired and that you love so much. You spent your hard earned money on them, you should use them? Get out some older accessories that you haven't used in a long time too, you will have fun!

Until next time............. Blessings, Lisa

Sparkling Flowers

Hello. I just wanted to share a card that I made while experimenting with the Stampin Up Textured impressions embossing folder, and the cosmo glitter stack. In case you are new to my blog, I love all things that sparkle, so I went a little overboard on this one, but I love it.



















I saw something similar to this over on Splitcoaststampers website, but I can't remember the creator, so I am sorry I can't show you where my inspiration came from. The one that inspired me was cut from vellum card stock, just like mine is here, but did not have any glitter added. I know I love this embossing folder and I hope SU gets together with Sizzix and adds more of them to our catalog.

Anyhoo, after running this through my Cuttlebug machine, I cut off the excess at the top around the design, and went over the embossed areas with my Stampin Up two-way glue pen, then just sprinkled on the glitter and shook off the excess. It's messy, but fun! I adhered the vellum piece with some vellum adhesive so that the adhesive would not be seen through the vellum. The sentiment is from SU's "Sincere Salutations" stamp set and I stamped it in SU Brilliant Blue. I finished it off with a bow from some white organdy ribbon from my stash.

I hope it brought a bright spot to your day! Until next time...Blessings, Lisa

Hiding Butterflies

are on the card that I am showing you today. A few months ago, a friend of mine was cleaning out her craft room, and gave me a bunch of stuff for free that she wasn't using. Well, one of those items was a package of pre-cut cards with windows cut out of them. I was pondering what could I do with them, and the card below is what I came up with:















The stamps that I used are from a Hero Arts Wood mounted set called Patterned Butterflies. I stamped the butterflies on the inside, knowing that the full butterfly would not be seen from the front of the card, then when you open it up, the second page looks like the following photo:















Then, so that the card could be used to write on, I added a third page with Stampin Up's Whisper White Card stock, which can be seen in this photo:















The colors of ink that were used to stamp this card were the following:

Stampin Up ~ Ballet Blue, Real Red, Brilliant Blue, Only Orange, Lovely Lilac, Yoyo Yellow, Tempting Turquoise, Green Galore, Pink Passion. The two flower embellishments on the front are from Prima.

I hope it brightens your day. Until next time...Blessings, Lisa

Here it is...........

The pink version with a gray bunny that I mentioned in my previous post. Yes, I am blogging in the middle of the night, sometimes, things make it hard for people to sleep. I am referring to my ever so friendly kitty waking me up. Oh well, typing on my blog shall make me sleepy again.

So, here is the card:















I love this bunny, he reminds me of Thumper from the Disney cartoon "Bambi". They should have added a little skunk to this set, so we could have had a "Flower " look-a-like. Don't you think so?

The card stock colors that I used on this were Stampin Up's Pretty in Pink, Regal Rose, and Rose Red.

Ok, sleepiness hit me already, my poor eyeballs are feeling the pain. Goodnight. Lisa

P.S. If there are any typing or spelling errors, then it's the kitty's fault!

Forest Friends and the Word Window Punch

Hello. Thanks for the warm wishes for my sweet doggie, she has been slowly improving each day. I am hoping to get her to eat today, she is making me a little nervous about that one. However, she is drinking plenty of water, so that is a step in the right direction. Ok, on with a card. I saw this totally cute card layout over on Splitcoaststampers.com, and absolutely had to case it. As always, I changed it some. Here is a link to the card that inspired me. And, here is my take on it:














The card base is SU Kraft card stock, the monochromatic purples are Almost amethyst, Lavender Lace, and Lovely Lilac. The sentiment is from the Trendy Trees Stamp Set, the scalloped circle is Very Vanilla card stock. I used my SU Lovely Lilac marker to make the dots in the scallops and above and below the word window shapes. Yes, I used a straight edge to keep the word window shapes in a straight line across the card. I stamped, cut out, and popped up the deer with some foam dimensionals. Watch those skinny legs of his if you cut him out, it is easy to cut or tear them off accidentally. The last thing is that the three purple rhinestones are from Hero Arts. I also made on in Blue monochromatic colors, which you can see in the following picture:


















After I got the Blue Word Window Shapes onto the card base, it made me think of a dear friend of mine, Lydia Fiedler. Her favorite color is blue, and she likes owls. Me likey Seahorses, she likeys owls. So, I stamped the owl from the Forest Friends stamp set. He need to see some ink anyways. I am thinking that the bunny from this stamp set might look good on pinks. I may add that one later. Yep, a basic gray bunny , on Monochromatic pinks!

Anyways, onto the colors used: Bashful Blue, Ballet Blue, and Brilliant Blue. Everything else is the same, except the blue rhinestones are from Michael's on this card. Tune back in later today, I might have a couple more of these posted.

Oh, speaking of my friend Lydia, pop on over to her blog today because she has made and posted the cutest birds made from Paper punches, and I think one of the new die-cut scallop circles from Stampin Up. Anyways, they are too cute, go see them! Oh, another link.....I heard Jennifer McGuire is on the Hero Arts Blog all of this week, and she is so creative. So, pop on over there and see what she has made to show us all, I am sure it will be some too cute eye candy. I put a link to her blog as well, awesome card ideas over there. Am I just full of links today or what? What can I say, its Monday so my daughter is at school, my husband is at work, and I am all alone to stamp and create! Gotta love that. Ok, off to do a few chores and eat lunch, so I can get back to stamping. Whew Who! Have a great day. Blessings, Lisa

I don't know what to say

except that I may not be able to post for a few days, as one of my furry family members is sick. My miniature Dachshund, Brandy has Peripheral Vestibular Syndrome. It comes on rather suddenly, and it is caused by inflammation of the inner ear. The poor thing is extremely dizzy, so she has an upset stomach, and can barely walk straight. I did some research on this on the net, and it can last from anywhere from 3 days to 3 weeks. We are supposed to hold her alot and hand feed and water her. When she tries to walk after eating or drinking, she throws up. It kind of makes me feel helpless. We as a family are huge animal lovers, and consider them one of God's greatest gifts. So, she is one of our babies. I read this is very scary to the animal, and is very common in old animals (she's almost 15). So, please excuse my absence, and pray for Brandy to have a quick recovery. I will be back as soon as I am able, don't give up on my blog.


Blessings to all, Lisa

Big Shot Scallop Envelope Basket

Hello. Please excuse my absence again, I managed to lose my memory card for my digital camera. From now on, I shall keep a spare around. So, just a quick post to show you the final project from my Stampin Up upline meeting a couple of weeks ago. We made a cute little square basket out of four scalloped envelope die-cuts ran through the Big Shot machine. A picture of the die-cut can be found on page 196 of the SU Spring-Summer catalog. Anyways, here is a photo of the basket:




I have to thank my upline, Lila for the design of the basket. Thanks again Lila! If you click on the photo and zoom in, you will notice that the basket is held together by the side flaps of the envelope shape. We used our sticky strip on each of these. The basket handle is held on with a couple of silver brads, and to keep the handle stationary, I also put a small piece of sticky strip under each brad. The cute little embellishment on the front was made with the SAB stamp set called Polka Dot Punches, a circle punch, a scallop circle punch, and a blue Rhinestone Brad. A strip of Designer paper (also from SAB) was cut, wrapped around the basket and adhered again with my sticky strip. Now, the bottom of the basket was a bit unstable, so I used sticky strip yet again to keep the flaps from moving. See the next photo below:






A square piece of card stock added to the bottom inside of the basket would also help make it stronger as well. That about sums it up. I used mine for an Easter decor, with little chicks and eggs in it. I am picturing it looking real cute setting out at a bridal or baby shower as a decoration or treat holder as well. Just change the colors and designer paper to fit your theme.


I have a couple more photos to show below of the sides of the basket. If you have any questions, drop me an email or comment. Blessings, Lisa

Circle Scissor from Stampin Up

Hello. Sorry to neglect my blog, I am busy getting ready for Easter Sunday. I had mentioned that at a recent Stampin Up meeting with my upline, we made a card where we got to try out the circle scissor tool that Stampin Up added to their catalog this Spring. Well, it is a really cool tool, but takes a bit of practice to get those circles perfect. Some of the ladies, goofed up some card stock, before they got something they could use. I totally recommend it, just be patient with it, and yourself. Once you get the hang of it, you will love it. Now, the circle you will see on the card below is my very first attempt using the circle scissor. I am totally not joking. I kind of watched and listened to everyone else when they were using it, then after I saw that everyone else had their turn, I gave it a try. Tee Hee.




Now, I know you are saying that the circle looks wider on one side than the other and you are correct, but remember this is my first time using the tool. I think that considering that, I did pretty good. Oh, I must give credit for the card design, which goes to my upline Lila. Thanks a bunch Lila! All supplies used are Stampin Up products. The card base is Kiwi Kiss., the stamped images are mounted on Chocolate Chip, the button in the right hand corner is one of the new Corduroy Brads. I am loving those new brads, they are too cute and can be layered on top of the coordinating buttons that come with them. I plan to get some and mix and match the colors, very awesome! Ok, the stamp set is Garden Whimsey. The ink colors are Tangerine Tango, Kiwi Kiss, Pacific Point, and Chocolate Chip. Oh, and the circle is made from Pacific Point Blue card stock. I wish I could give you a tutorial on the circle scissor, but at the moment I don't personally own one. If I get enough comments to make a photo tutorial (I don't have a video camera), then I will see if I can borrow one from someone. So, if you want the tutorial, leave a comment. I should say, that an in person demonstration is more helpful, but if you want me to blog it, I will blog it. Everyone have a very wonderful Easter. God Bless, Lisa

More fun with the SU Big Shot!

Hello. Ok, I have yet another project that we created at my upline, Lila's house. This one is awesome, I have to say. We used the flower embossing folder that coordinates with the Manhattan Flower stamp set. I again, heat embossed the raised portions with clear embossing powder. So, here it is:



The colors that we used were Stampin Up's Baha Breeze (gorgeous), Whisper White, Chocolate Chip. We also used as you can see the coordinating stamp set, Manhattan Flower, and embellished the card with 5/8" Chocolate Chip Grosgrain Ribbon, a filigree brad/brown flower combo from the flower assortment brads.

The Textured Impressions die looks exactly like and is used exactly like a cuttlebug embossing folder. So easy to use, and look at the awesome result! Give me a call and order one!

Blessings, Lisa

Big Shot / Stamping on Card

I went to a Stampin Up meeting last week at my upline's house, and she had all kinds of stuff out for the Big Shot for us to play with, and 4 projects for us to make. Do I have a great upline, or what? So, the one that I am showing you today uses the "Top Note" die, "Little Leaf", and one of the flower embosslits.



Just in case you haven't seen any of the embosslits that SU has to use in their Sizzix Big Shot machine, the flowers on the card were made from one of them. The leaves, were made from the little leaves sizzlets die-cut, and the vanilla piece is the Top Note Bigz die-cut. The darker areas of the flowers are the embossed areas, and I took them a step further when I got home and colored them with the fine point end of my Versamarker, and heat embossed them with some SU clear embossing powder. They looked great without the heat embossing, I am just obsessed with heat embossing right now. The swirls stamped on the vanilla piece are from SU Baroque Motifs stamp set, and the sentiment is from Sincere Salutations Stamp set. The card base and leaves are Always Artichoke, and Elegant Eggplant on top of that. The flower centers are Stampin Up's Rhinestone Brads, the flowers, and leaves were attached with SU Stampin Dimensionals. I think that about covers it. As always, feel free to contact me or leave a comment if you have any questions. Come back again this week, as I have 3 other projects from this fabulous workshop to show you. Two of the the projects involve the Big Shot, and the last one utilized the new Circle Scissor that Stampin Up sells now. Oh, and thanks again to my upline, Lila, for these great project ideas, and for letting us play with your new tools! We all had a great time crafting at your house!

Blessings, Lisa

An Old Stampin Up Favorite

of mine is what I decided to post today. Stampin Up's "Cute Critters" is one of those stamp sets for me that I may never part with, mostly because I love SU's hedgehogs, and the one in this set is too cute. Anyways, here is the card:



First I started out stamping these two images on watercolor paper, because I was in the mood to color. I had no idea what I was going to do with them afterwards. So, they sat on my table for oh.........2 weeks. Tell me this happens to you viewers as well! I colored, matted......and then went completely blank! So, finally here it is finished. Yes, I am unsatisfied with it, I am my own worst critic. But then, aren't we all? I seemed to have lost my ability to keep things straight on this card! Yes, Lydia, (my friend from Understand Blue), I know I should purchase a stamp-a-majig, and read your article on this very thing in the March, 2009 issue of "Scrap & Stamp Arts" magazine. Yes, I am very proud of her, and not afraid to brag about the fact that she is my friend! Hi Lydia! Ok, on with the card........The card base is Regal Rose card stock, then Very vanilla is layered on top of that. The cute critters are mounted on Lavender Lace card stock, and the sentiment is stamped in Lavender Lace Classic Ink from Stampin Up. Now onto the contraband items. The ribbon is from KI Memories, the flowers are from Prima (where else), the cute little pearl centers on the flowers are from Michael's Craft store. I adhered the ribbon with Snail adhesive, and it is hard to tell, but the critters are popped up with some foam dimensionals. That about sums it up. Gotta run, my DH is patiently waiting to help me with something her in my wonderful craft room. Until next time, Blessings! Lisa

Bird on a Branch

is the stamp set that I used for a card today. I just recently received this stamp set, and I finally had time to create something with it. So without further delay, here is what I came up with:

I used the Top Note Die cut out of Whisper White card stock, Certainly Celery is the base of the card. The tree branch and sentiment were stamped with Close to Cocoa classic ink, the bird is Bashful Blue, the blossoms on the tree branch are Pretty in Pink, and I used my SU 2-way glue pen on the blossoms and added Dazzling Diamonds glitter. The top note shape edges were sponged with Pretty in Pink Classic ink. The three pink baubles are from Michael's, last year when they were on clearance in their floral section. That about sums it up. I am short and sweet tonight, literally. Tee hee. Actually, I am short (4'-10") everynight, just not always sweet. Tee hee, again.

Blessings, Lisa