Rainy Days and Mondays Won't Get Me Down!

Hi Everyone!
Another rainy Monday! I refuse to let these "Rainy Days and Mondays" get me down. I am very excited about this blog. In addition to showing you photos of my cards and sharing the techniques that I used, I plan to tell you about the papercrafting books and magazines that I treasure, the places I shop for my supplies, and how I organize my materials.

I am sending out Easter cards for the first time. The envelopes are addressed and notes are written inside many of the cards. I will share photographs of some of them with you.

I used the Martha Stewart bunny punch and an EK Success flower punch to create my "Happy Spring" card. The "Happy Spring" stamp is from Northwoods Rubber Stamps. If you look closely at the card you may be able to tell that the flowers are 3-dimensional. My friend Susan DeMuth taught me the technique and I use it all of the time. Punch out some flowers and place them on a paper piercing mat. (By the way my favorite piercing mat is from Bazzill Basics Paper.) Using a stylus press down on the center of each flower. You will see the petals on the flower pop up. Use mini glue dots to attach the flowers to your card. The flowers will flatten slightly when you place the card in the envelope, but they will still have a 3-dimensional appearance.
I found a great way to attach tiny rhinestones to the centers of the flowers. Kate Farricker, the owner of Absolutely Everything in Massachusetts, showed me Picksey Pick-Ups from Outlines Rubber Stamp Company. The Picksey Pick-Ups are tiny pieces of beeswax. You soften the beeswax with the heat of your fingers and mold the piece around a toothpick. The tool you have created helps you pick up even the tiniest of rhinestones and place them on your card.

By the way Absolutely Everything is a scrapbooking store that is located in Topsfield, MA. In addition to carrying every papercrafting product you could ever want, Kate and her incredible staff go out of their way to greet you when you walk through the door and help you locate whatever you need. They also are great sources of information if you have a question about a product or a technique.

I used the clear egg stamps and text from PaperTreyInk’s "Egg Hunt" stamp set to create today’s second card. PaperTrey’s products are fantastic and I am slowly acquiring a collection of their stamps. The purple egg on my card is raised with 3-dimensional dots. When you visit their web site you can find ideas on using their stamps by clicking on the "View Art gallery" link next to the stamp images. My card is a slight adaptation of Nikki Estes card.

I want to tell you that the customer service at PaperTreyInk is also incredible. If you e-mail them a question they respond to you in less than 24 hours. Their stamps arrive in a clear plastic package along with an empty cd case for you to use the stamps, labels for the cd case, and suggestions on ways to store and clean your stamps. Be sure to sign up for their newsletter and read Nichole’s blog each day.

See the bow on my Easter egg card? I learned a really easy and awesome way to tie a bow and attach it to your card from Jeanette, the owner of Stamped Designs in Dover, NH. Follow this link to read about her technique: http://stampeddesignsblog.blogspot.com/2010/01/tying-bow-to-wrap-around-card-layer.html

I have only been to Stamped Designs once because it’s quite a distance from my house, about 1.5 hours away, but I plan to go there again very soon. Jeanette has an awesome collection of stamps and other papercrafting products. I attended a workshop at her store and had a wonderful time. I used Scor-Pal during the workshop and purchased one right after the class.

Okay. That’s all for now. TTYL Carol