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Check out the link below for some awesome pictures of how the Stampin' Up! staff celebrate Halloween.
They are an amazing bunch - so happy to be at work. Well who wouldn't be happy to work at 'stamping'??
The staff are a good reason we love to go to SU events - the energy & joy they project keeps us hoping to come back for more. You'll see why here:
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I recently received a flyer from Archiver's advertising their Holiday classes. I was amazed to see they are asking $15 for just 4 cards at these classes! And they aren't very involved cards either - each has maybe two layers with a bit of ribbon or brads on it - pretty basic, but nice cards.
Well, if you live locally & want a good deal, consider coming to one of my Stamp a Stacks. You'll get 12 very beautiful & unique cards for just $15. Probably should ask more, but I'll stick by this price for now.
****I do have a few spots open for next Saturday's SAS (Stamp a Stack) on November 8th also. Check this post for pictures of the 4 different cards we're doing that day. I'll take registration until I'm full or up 'til Wednesday, November 5th.
Here are the cards we'll be doing on Saturday, November 22nd. It's hard to see the sparkle, shimmer & shine on these cards, but there is either glitter or embossing on each of them.
Many of these cards were cased from other very talented stampers:
Let it Snow-flake card - www.Queensscene.blogspot.com
Seasons Greetings snowflake card - tankgirl here
Keep an eye out for the cards for my final Christmas Stamp a Stack on Friday, December 5th.
Remember that if you attend all three SAS sessions, the last one is only $10!! Now that's a good deal!
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It's Friday & time for another Christmas Card idea for my weekly series.
Ever since I've been making hand-stamped cards I have not purchased any Christmas cards - I just couldn't justify buying any when I can make them. But, I like to send a family picture each year too. So the dilemma of how to do both....... Here's the answer! And EXAMPLES too!!
This is Jake & Josh - two of my great nephews. No, I am not 'that' old. My nephew & I are only a few years apart! Aren't they cute on this card?
This is a very easy card to do. And you can use those school pictures that you get too many of each year too.
I punched their pictures using the 1 3/8" circle punches & then layered it onto a Red Scallop Circle punched piece.
Then I tied a bow with silver cord & adhered it to the scallop with a mini glue dot. I adhered a length of silver cord from behind the top layer to under the scalloped pictures. Easy!
The snowflakes are from the set called Snow Burst. I inked these in White craft ink & embossed using Iridescent Ice embossing powder. Love that EP!
The Merry Christmas is stamped using Versamark & embossed with white EP.
And, here they are again with their pets.
This type of card is easy if you have access to circle or oval cutters.
Just cut an oval from the center of your top layer of card stock & adhere it over your photo.
I added a bit of paper piercing to the corners & a greeting below. Almost looks like a snow globe, doesn't it?!
The card stock is Shimmer - a lovely, heavy white-toned card stock. The main card is Always Artichoke.
This one is sneaky. There's no obvious photo here. But, wait until you see the inside!
You could do any type of card front you'd like - no restrictions at all.
I used the Big Shot & the large snowflake & large Scallop circle dies currently available in our Holiday Mini Catalog. Boy do they make things fast & easy!
I also used the Snow Blossom punch and our Filigre designer brads for the center of the snowflake.
I added a greeting, embossed in white, striped ribbon & some white accents using the Signo white gel pen.
This is a photo of my three children a few years ago - well maybe almost 10 years ago!
I just adhered the photo to the inside left of the card & added a stamped layer to the other side.
The Joy & Love is from the 'Join in the Cheer' Decorative Strip die from Sizzix.
There you go - some neat ideas to include your own family photos in your hand made Holiday cards this year.
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This week's Wednesday Punch Art features a fun little turkey. It would be perfect to put on place cards at Thanksgiving, on a Scrapbook page or on a little greeting card like I've done.
Here's the recipe & directions:
It's hard to see the scalloped 'tail feathers', but they are made with the Scalloped circle punch. See the directions below.
Stamps - Holidays & Wishes
Ink - Chocolate Chip
Card Stock - Hostess level 1 DSP patterns pack, Mustard, Chocolate Chip, Whisper White, Real Red - buttons, Black -hat, Orange - beak
Accessories - Scalloped Circle punch, 1 3/8" circle punch - body, 1" circle punch - head, 1/4 circle punch - buttons, 3 flower punch - beak, 3/4" square punch - hat, Scalloped edge punch - feet, Black marker - eyes, Wide Chocolate grosgrain ribbon
To make his feathers, you'll need three scallop circles punched from 3 different colors of patterned paper or card stock.
I used the Hostess Level 1 Designer Series Patterns paper for mine - in Mustard, Artichoke & Real Red.
In the picture I just used Turquoise card stock so you can see the marked lines easily.
Step 1
Count 5 scallops & fold that portion of the circle down.
Step 2
With the folded portion towards the back, fold in half to form a crease in the middle for reference (I just drew a line here instead), then unfold.
Step 3
Fold the flat edge down from each side so the folded edges line up with the middle crease (similar to a paper airplane fold).
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I just had to do a layout using the awesome colors of Autumn.
And I found the most beautiful inspiration from a card that Vera S made on Splitcoast - here: Vera's Card
So here is the Layout for November's Scrapbook Clubs:
This layout works well for leaf & nature pictures as well as Thanksgiving pics.
We'll be using the new In Color Tangerine Tango along with Old Olive, Mustard, Chocolate, Vanilla & Summer Sun.
The Autumn is stamped using the Lovely Letters alphabet.
The leaves & buttons are cut out using the Big Shot & the leaves & buttons dies.
Stamps - Happiness Always (Level 3 Hostess set) & Inspired by Nature.
Ink - Old Olive, More Mustard, Tangerine Tango, White craft ink, Chocolate
Accessories - Tangerine striped ribbon, Stamp-a-ma-Jig
*****Remember that if you do not want to do an Autumn or Thanksgiving theme, you can do Halloween instead. I have a Pumpkin Sizzix die that would work perfectly instead of the leaves.
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Just thought I would show you the cards we made this month at my Card Clubs.
By the way, I am looking for a few people to fill out a Daytime Card Club. We meet once a month on the second Thursday at 3:30 pm.
These are the sort of cards we do each time:
This card uses one of the Birthday stamp set on sale this month - Party Hearty.
Don't you just love the colors? Who would have thought you could mix Basic Gray with Green Galore & Pink? I think the Black pulls it all together beautfully.
Stamps - Party Hearty, Polka Dot background
Card Stock - Basic Gray, Black, Pixie Pink, Green Galore & Whisper White
Ink - Versamark,
Accessories - Markers - Pixie Pink, Summer Sun & Green Galore, Black gingham ribbon, green grosgrain ribbon, white embossing powder, dimentionals, 2-way glue, Dazzling Diamonds glitter
Isn't this fall card adorable? And the fold is easy & fun too. The ribbon holds the Mustard flap down. Check out the picture below to see how it works.
Stamps - Flowers for all Seasons, Canvas BG
Card Stock - Mustard, Really Rust, Naturals White, Autumn Vine DSP, Chocolate Chip
Ink - Chocolate Chip, Brown Stazon, Really Rust, Close to Cocoa
Accessories - Wide Chocolate grosgrain ribbon, aqua-painters, markers - Summer Sun, Mellow Moss, Ruby Red, Brads
See how it works? Cool huh?
The measurements for the main pieces are as follows:
Chocolate Chip Base - 4 1/4" X 5 1/2"
Really Rust - 4" X 8" - score at 5 1/8"
Mustard - 4 1/4" X 2 3/4" - score at 3/8"
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I've had a few requests for my Salsa Recipe from the other day.
I have made salsa each fall for many years; this is a compilation of a few different recipes.
Salsa Ninety Nine (medium heat)
24 lbs tomatoes
1 12 oz. can tomato paste
1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped (optional)
14 jalapeno chili peppers (chopped fine with gloves on!!)
2 heads garlic, chopped
6 large green bell peppers, chopped
6 large onions, chopped
9 Tbsp. salt
2/3 c. vinegar
1/2 c. brown sugar
3 tsp. chili powder
2 Tbsp. minced chipotle peppers
3 tsp. cumin
Remove skins from tomatoes, squeezing out as many seeds as you can & then dice them.
****To easily remove the skins, place the whole tomatoes in a pot of boiling water for 1 minute & then into an ice water bath for another minute or so. Then peel & dice
Add the diced tomatoes with all remaining ingredients to a large pot & simmer for 30 minutes or so on medium heat, stirring often until the vegetables are soft. I have cooked mine for up to an hour as I am prepping my jars.
If the salsa isn't thick enough for your liking, mix 1/2 c. water with 1/2 c. cornstarch & stir into the salsa. Heat through well.
Place hot water in sterilized jars & top with lids.
I process mine in a water bath/canner for 20 minutes to seal.
I believe you could also freeze this salsa in freezer containers. Let it cool before placing in containers first.
Variations:
- Roast a head or two of garlic in foil in a slow oven (250) for an hour. Squeeze out pulp & add it to your salsa. Adds a great roasted garlic flavor.
- Add diced Zucchini to the salsa. We like ours chunky & I always have an extra one or two at this time of year. Enjoy!!
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The Christmas card idea (sketch) this week makes use of small stamps. We all have a ton of those we never quite know how to use to complete a full card in a pleasing manner.
Well here's an easy idea:
This cute card was one of the cards from a Stamp a Stack I did last season.
Measurements are as follows:
Main card - 4 1/4" X 11"
Red piece - 3 1/4" square
Large white piece - 3" square
The small images are punched using the 1 1/4" square punch & the colored squares are punched using the 1 3/8" square. Remember to always stamp before you punch! Much easier that way.
How easy is that?
Stamps - Merry & Bright, (oops the 'Be Merry' stamp is a retired stamp! Sorry!)
Card stock - Bashful Blue, Real Red, White, Olive, Chocolate
Ink - Black Stazon, Bashful Blue
Accessories - markers, 1 1/4" & 1 3/8" square punches, Red gingham ribbon, white & blue grosgrain ribbon, 2-way glue, Dazzling Diamonds glitter
Here's another:
Sorry the picture is so dark - I had to take it in the evening & they just don't turn out as well for me then.
To get the snowflakes to pop like this I first stamped them onto the White CS using Versamark ink & then embossed in White embossing powder. Clear EP would also work well. Then I sponged Lavendar Lace ink over the top of each snowflake with a sponge dauber. Neat effect huh?
And I just have to mention how I LOVE our detail embossing powders. The beautiful saying at the bottom of the card is a very fine script which needs a detail embossing powder to make it so perfectly clear & readable.
Stamps - Wondrous Gift
Card stock - Navy, Lavendar Lace, Whisper White
Ink - Versamark, Lavendar Lace
Accessories - sponge daubers, white detail embossing powder, embossing buddy, heat gun, white taffeta ribbon, 1 1/4" & 1 3/8" square punches
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Here is what I did today.
First I made that Salsa that was calling my name all week! 25 pints!!
The
notebooks are some I found at M's a while back. I haven't finished
them all - need to add ribbon to the spiral edge on two of them. All I added to the front are the Celery flowers - the petals are
punched using the large oval punch & the 3/4" circle is punched from Brilliant Blue for the
center.
The pens are beaded. To do this I first stamped a sticky label cut to size, added it
to the pen & then adhered sticky strip to it. Roll it in micro
beads & you're done. These are very fun to make!
At the bottom are bookmarks with the 2009 calendar on the opposite
side. I have added this calendar to my Documents & Templates area
on the right side of this blog. You will need Adobe Reader (it's Free) to open
it.
Here is a close-up of the bookmarks. I used both Versamark ink & White craft ink.
Stamps - Wanted, Inspired by Nature, Bugs & Kisses
Accessories - In Color striped ribbon, Horizontal slot punch, clear EP on the horses bookmark
I had questions on how to make the tile recipe/photo holders. Here's the info:
Stamp the ceramic tiles (matt finish, not glossy tiles, work best) with Stazon ink. Heat set in the oven at 250 degrees for 20 minutes. Let cool. Color in with Sharpie markers.
I then wrapped the edge with ribbon using mini glue dots to secure at the corners.
Here's
a picture of the back. I used hot glue to secure the binder clips but pop up glue dots also work.
These clips are excellent for
holding the tile upright to use as a recipe or photo holder.
I added 'Stickles' to mine at the end.
******And I also thought I would share info about the little calendars I used on the craft items I posted yesterday. I purchased them at:
http://impressrubberstamps.com/
I also found one on Splitcoast that you can print off & staple together to make your own. I uploaded it to the Documents & Templates area on the right side of this blog.
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