Thursday, August 23, 2012

Awesome August Stamp Class

Have I ever mentioned how much pleasure I get from sharing the joy of crafting with others?   Probably about a million times by now but it's so true.    Last night is a typical example of me and how I do things.   I actually had all of my projects prepared the day before the class (okay - that is not typical of me at all!).    Then I busted my butt all day cleaning my house from top to bottom.    By the time class is supposed to start, I'm totally exhausted and can hardly keep my eyes open (because I was up so late the night before getting my projects organized!).  How am I going to find the energy to conduct a class?   It happens every time - the excitement of being with other ladies who love to craft, their enthusiasm and interest and amazing crafting ability give me the burst of energy I need.   Of course, the chatting and laughing have a big part in perking me up too.    Once again I was totally impressed with the skill and abilities of some new stampers.   It is so satisfying seeing others take pleasure in the doing something that I love so much.   Ah, enough chatter and on to the projects.

First of all we started with an altered project and then made a matching card:
It is canning season but since I don't do any canning, I needed to use these pretty jars for something else.   They are wonderful for gift giving.   I made sure to have some candy in the ones I gave the ladies for their projects.   This project was also a great way to showcase some of our new fabric.   The matching card is so cute and was CASEd from Christy Fulk.    Check out her blog at http://createwithchristy.blogspot.ca/2012/08/my-first-perfectly-preserved-card.html.    Thanks for the inspiration Christy.    I changed my card up just a little bit.

JAR SUPPLIES:

Paper:   early espresso core'dinations, more mustard, whisper white
Stamps:  Friendship Preserves
Ink:   island indigo
Accessories:   big shot, window frames collection framelits, woodgrain and polka dot embossing folders, orchard harvest designer fabric, more mustard polka dot scallop ribbon

CARD SUPPLIES:

Paper:  early espresso, more mustard, raspberry ripple, lucky limeade, orchard harvest DSP, whisper white
Stamps:  Perfectly Preserved
Ink:  island indigo, early espresso, lucky limeade, raspberry ripple
Accessories:   big shot, cannery set framelits, bitty banners framelits, woodgrain embossing folder

Finally, a vintage look thanksgiving card:
SUPPLIES:

Paper:  cherry cobbler, more mustard, old olive, soft suede, chocolate chip, watercolour paper, very vanilla
Stamps:   Full of Blessings
Ink:  pumpkin pie, old olive, more mustard, chocolate chip, cherry cobbler, bashful blue, early espresso
Accessories:   big shot, labels collection framelits, ovals die (retired), Autumn Accents bigz die, brushed bronze designer buttons, 1 1/4" scallop circle punch

I hope you enjoyed these projects.    Thanks for stopping by.

Pat


Sunday, August 12, 2012

Stamping is not just for cards ...

I often tell people that I will stamp anything that doesn't move.   Stamping isn't just about putting ink to paper - other products work too!   Last week I showed you how beautiful (and easy) stamped candles can be.   Here are a few more projects that I work on and sell at our local Farmers Market and trade/craft shows:
Who would have ever thought of using aluminum flashing as a crafting base??   Somebody did and I love them for it.   I have the occasional original idea but not many.   Thank goodness for the internet and the willingness of other crafters to share their projects.    As with most of my projects, I will get the idea from somewhere and then expand on it or tweak it to suit what product I have on hand.    I have made these using various SU dies, ie: flowers, scalloped circles, ovals and now our new oval accent die.    My best buddy, the Big Shot, cuts the aluminum like butter and then smoothly embosses them with whatever embossing folder I'm using.

Garden decor

SUPPLIES:
Stamps:   all retired
Ink:   jet black and azure blue stazon ink
Accessories:   Big Shot, scallop circle and oval accent dies, elegant bouquet and designer frames embossing folders, crop-a-dile (retired)

Another project that is quite popular is stamping on tile to make coasters:


The tile is tumbled stone from Turkey.   Being a natural product, it is full of defects such as veins and rough or broken edges.   These defects only add to the look of the tile, in my opinion.    It is important to clean the tile with a damp cloth and let them dry over night so that you have a clean dry surface to stamp on.   Once again, I use stazon to stamp the images and I colour with chalks and/or permanent marker.   The chalks/pastels give a softer water colour effect so they are my preference for colouring.   My husband is in charge of sealing the tiles with an acrylic sealer, usually about three or four coats.   I use small felt pads on the bottom corners of the tile so they don't scratch furniture.

SUPPLIES:
Stamps:  Blooming with Kindness and Bliss (retired SAB)
Ink:  Jet black stazon, SU pastels
Accessories:   Qtips, acrylic sealer

Isn't stamping fun??   I love it!     Thanks for stopping by.

Pat

Sunday, August 5, 2012

Creative Crew Challenge for August

August is my last month as a member of the Splitcoaststampers Creative Crew.    It has been a wonderful experience and I'm so glad I tried it.    This month's challenge was a focus on friendship.    

The first challenge was to create a card using the bright colours from the Summer Smooches DSP:

So I totally went overboard with colour on this card.    I made sure to incorporate ALL of the colours that are included in the Summer Smooches DSP.

SUPPLIES:

Card Stock:   real red, tempting turquoise, island indigo, daffodil delight, lucky limeade, rich razzleberry, whisper white, tangerine tango, Summer Smooches DSP
Stamps:  My Friend
Ink:   basic black
Accessories:   daffodil delight seam binding ribbon, vintage brads, scallop border punch, floral frames framelits, big shot

The next challenge was to focus on brads:

I continued with the summer smooches colours and used brads from the brights glimmer pack.

SUPPLIES:

Card stock:  rich razzleberry, lucky limeade, whisper white
Stamps:  Reason to Smile, My Friend
Ink:   basic black, rich razzleberry
Accessories:   Big Shot, layered labels framelits, fancy fan embossing folder, brights glimmer brads, rich razzleberry stitched ribbon

The holiday focus challenge was to create a flip-flop card for a friend:
Card front



Opened card
This is why I loved being on the Creative Crew!   It inspired me to try new things.   I had never tried the flip-flop technique before and now I love it!

SUPPLIES:

Card stock:   island indigo, whisper white, summer smooches DSP
Stamps:  Bright Blossoms, Word Play
Ink:   daffodil delight, old olive, island indigo, basic black
Accessories:   big shot, layered labels framelits, polka dot embossing folder, brights glimmer brads, small oval punch, daffodil delight stitched ribbon, linen thread

Even though I have finished my term as part of the Creative Crew, I will still continue to play along with the challenges.    It will definitely continue to be a learning experience.

Thank you for stopping by.

Pat
 

Thursday, August 2, 2012

Stylin' Stampin' Squad August Blog Hop



Hello again. It's time for our August Stylin' Stampin' Blog Hop. The focus of the hop this month is our holiday catalogue favourites. We have also been challenged to create projects using DSP or fabric from the holiday catalogue. I am totally unable to meet this month's challenge as I do not yet have DSP or fabric from the holiday catalogue. GASP!! What??? I know, how crazy is that. Don't worry some of each will be arriving on my doorstep soon, just not in time to use for this hop. So without much ado, let's get started. You may have arrived here from Dawn's blog. I always love Dawn's creations and I'm sure you did do. Make sure to leave comments for all of our blog hop participants so they can all feel the love and appreciation for their hard work.

I will start with my 3D project:

I absolutely love the Frosty Friends stamp and wanted to use it for stamped candles. How cute are those snowmen!!

And now, a coordinating Christmas card:


Yep, love those snowmen!


SUPPLIES:

Stamps - Frosty Friends, Joyous Celebration
Ink - marina mist, cherry cobbler, old olive, daffodil delight, 
basic black, black stazon, bashful blue, pumpkin pie
Paper - marina mist, cherry cobbler, whisper white
Embellishments - cherry cobbler bakers twine, basic rhinestones
Tools - big shot, apothecary accents framelits, scalloped border punch, 
lacy brocade embossing folder, small oval punch

I hope you are enjoying the hop. You can proceed to Heather's blog by clicking on the next button below. Thanks for stopping by.

Pat

Heather's blog


Blog Hop Participants:
  1. Shellie G. of Creative Electica
  2. Annie L. of Love Me Cards
  3. Pam S. of Stampin' in the Sun!
  4. Nancy B. of Lady Stamps a Lot
  5. Rose C. of Stamp with Rose
  6. Tonya B. of Stampin' with Tonya
  7. Dawn S. of Dawn's Creative Chalet
  8. Patricia T. of Sunnyone Stampin'
  9. Heather W. of Heather's Stampin' Blog
  10. Pamela W. of Stinky Tofu
  11. Darcy J. of DJ's Stampin' Place
  12. Kim R. of Stamping with Kim
  13. Debra of Mommy Scraps