"Eerie Alley" from SEI

Hi Everyone!

You've heard of "Christmas in July"? Well, today we are celebrating "Halloweeen in July." Yesterday I told you about the SEI paper that I recently purchased. Well, their "Eerie Alley" paper stack was included in that purchase and I just HAD to create some cards with it. There are 24 pieces of paper in the 4.5" x 6.5" paper stack. There are 12 patterns in the stack and 6 of them are varnished. One of the patterns is 2 pages of Halloween phrases.

This first card is my favorite. It reminds me of a country wall hanging. The jack o'lanterns were cut from one of the varnished papers. "Carve out some good times" is from the text page. I added some large and small brads from my stash and paper pierced the edges of 2 of the papers I layered onto the card.

The orange and black wavy stripes on this card seem to move as I stare at them. I created and cut a ghost out of white tag and then paper pierced the edges of it. I added some wiggly eyes to it just for fun and used a marker to add a mouth. "Happy Haunting" is one of the phrases in the stack.

I used a Martha Stewart edger punch to help me create the gate for the 5 little jack o'lanterns. The owl is from one of the varnished papers and so is the text. I used pop dots to give the jack o'lanterns some dimension.

This was an easy card to create. I just added some alphabet rub-ons to the squares on the paper to create my message. I also added some gems from my stash.

I used my Scor-Buddy to help me create this gatefold card that I know Jeanne will love. "Hoo's there?" is from the text page in the stack, but I used some of my alphabet stickers from my stash to create, "Knock knock."

I put a pop dot on the back of each owl to give them dimension. When you open the "doors" on the card, there's a photograph of one of Jeanne's favorite trick-or-treaters. That's my son Robbie when he was 4 months old. I made his Halloween costume that year out of a blue velour shirt and some red velour pants. "Trick or treat" is from the text page in the stash.

Have a great Friday night! Marie's making us eggplant parmesan for our supper. YUM!

Carol

Exciting News

Hi Again!

I am so excited. I just received an e-mail from Maria at the SEI blog. She is featuring 2 of my cards on their blog today. Please stop by and visit their blog. You can get there by clicking here.

Have a great night!
Carol

Poppy Paper from SEI

Hi Everyone!

Warning! Warning! Warning! This is going to be a long post. Probably the longest one I have ever written. But it comes with pictures so I think you'll enjoy it.

Hope you noticed that a few weeks ago thanks to blogger I was able to add a "search" button to my blog. It’s a very cool resource and I use it often when I am trying to remember if I have already posted something or not. So if you search for "SEI" for example the link to the birthday cards I made with their Happy Day paper will pop up. When I read that posting I realized that I never did post pictures of the cards I made with their Moravia paper. I am hoping that I actually took pictures of them because I’m not sure if I have any of those cards left...but we won’t worry about any of that today. I still have lots of that paper left and will make more cards with it one of these days.

If ink, paper, embellishment, stamp companies, etc. have a newsletter I sign up for it. I usually skim through them when they appear in my mailbox. I learn about products and new techniques. Sometimes I receive coupons or special offers. And sometimes I learn about many people’s favorite 4-letter word....SALE!

Not long ago I got an e-mail from SEI telling about a clearance event and I decided to check it out. As I had anticipated I saw some blocks that I loved. They come in different sizes. Most of the cards I make measure 5.5" x 4.25" or 4.25" x 5.5" so I mostly purchase the small blocks that are 4.5" x 6.5". That’s not to say that I never purchase the 8" x8" or the 12" x 12" blocks because sometimes I do. But sometimes the patterns on the 12" x 12" blocks are larger than those on the smaller blocks and don't look as good on my cards as some of the smaller patterns do.

So I purchased one block each of their Eerie Alley, Chocolat, and Poppy papers. The package arrived yesterday and I LOVE LOVE LOVE (I sound like Toni!) what I bought. I stayed up until 2 AM creating cards. I just couldn’t help myself. Got up this morning and have already made another card.

All of the cards I have made so far have been created with the Poppy paper. I am sort of thinking that I "NEED" to buy another block of it while it’s still available. MaryBeth and I have great jokes about "NEED" versus "want". I might be good. I do have a lot of paper here to work with so I should be good. We’ll see.
Without further babbling...here are the cards.

Used my Fiskars small poppy punch to create the flowers on this card. I used scraps that were leftovers from the other cards when I was punching the flowers. I have saved every scrap and every leftover trimmed piece from the Poppy block in a little clear box because I like the way the colors work with each other and I want to use as much of it as I can. The leaves and stem were created with a clear stamp from PaperTrey Ink's "Turning a New Leaf" set. I use that set probably more often than any other set that I own. "Thinking of you" is from the Hero Arts clear stamp set called "Everyday Sayings". I haven’t had that set for very long. I love the variety of phrases on it and know it will become one of my frequently used sets.

The brads are a good example that sometimes it makes sense to stock up when you see a good deal. A long long time ago one of the chain stores had a great selection of brads in the clearance section and I remember MaryBeth and I bought a ton of them. Like I said it was a good decision because I have LOTS of brads in LOTS of colors so I always seem to have the colors I need to coordinate with whatever paper I happen to love that day!



I love this card. It’s not very busy and it works for me. "Thinking of you" is from that same Hero Arts "Everyday Sayings" clear stamp set. I added some twine to the button before I attached it to the card with a large glue dot.







This card reminds me of kitchen tiles. Not sure why! I like it. A lot. Not sure where the "Happy Birthday" clear stamp came from as I keep all of my Happy birthday stamps in the same cd case. When you click on the card to enlarge it notice the gold flourish that is on the square in the upper left hand corner and on the bottom middle square. Wish I had paid more attention and used a scrap with that gold flourish in the upper right hand corner too...just thought I'd share that thought with you so maybe you will think of it when you are creating your cards.



I love the background paper on this card. Used my plain and scalloped circle Nestabilities to create the circles. See the brads that I told you I had stocked up on. Same deal with the flowers. I pick them up when I see a good deal on them. Gems too. Didn't use any gems this time.





I think I like this card. I want to like it. It’s a little different. "Hello" was created with some Mrs. Grossman stickers that I bought a long time ago. The color works perfectly with this paper collection.





Now this card has a different color scheme than the others, but it is from the same block. Used my one-inch circle punch to create the circles. Notice there are more brads in other colors. Used the same Fiskars punch for the flowers and the same Hero Arts "Everyday Sayings" for "thinking of you."

Now many of you may not have the same papers that I used on today’s cards, but you can still create similar cards. Just substitute papers from your own collection and "copy" the ideas I have shared with you. Or so a little shopping with SEI!

Just got a great newsletter from http://www.scrapbooksetc.com/ in my mailbox. Sign up for it. Their newsletters are always filled with wonderful ideas.

I'd love to know which of today's cards you like best and why. Please post a comment to this blog so that I can share your thoughts with others. Your suggestions may trigger new card ideas for all of us.

Have a great day! I'm off to do some work.
Carol

Practicing My Coloring!

Hi Everyone!

I think I can get this posted before midnight! I told you that I bought some copic markers on Monday. I am very excited about that purchase and I’ve been practicing my coloring! I’d say my grade is slowing changing from N (needs improvement) to S- (almost satisfactory). I saw that there’s going to be a copic’s beginner’s class at InkAbout It in September and I am hoping to attend it. Meanwhile, I’ll keep watching copic youtube videos and practicing, practicing, practicing....

At the moment I think that the Colorless Blender marker is my friend. It takes away some of my ink when I get a little too ink crazy.


So for tonight I have just one card to show you. One that has some of my practicing on it. I used my Tuxedo Black Memento ink pad to stamp a series of daisies using my large daisy stamp from Purple Daisy Designs. Then I practiced my coloring. Doesn’t it sound so funny that a 57 year old woman would need to practice coloring!

After I had stamped and colored I cut out the flowers. I realized after I had finished cutting them that I do have the paper punch that coordinates with that stamp and could have used it. Oh, well. I practiced my cutting skills too. I used some Glossy Accents in the middle of each flower. The leaves were stamped with a clear stamp from PaperTrey Ink’s Turning Over a New Leaf set. I used medium glue dots to attach just the center of each flower to the card.

So that is it for tonight. BUT...I have other cards to show you tomorrow that I LOVE! I didn’t/don’t need to color them. You’ll be able to look at my ideas and create cards of your own using your favorite papers. So, please stop by again tomorrow and please leave some comments that I can post.

OH! I forgot to tell you about something very cool. Blogger has added a stats button to my dashboard. The stats show that there are crafters from all over the place....the United States, Canada, England, Russia, Australia, New Zealand, and Singapore reading my posts. I think that is SO Cool!
Okay, time to clean up today’s mess!


Carol

Critters in the Burbs

Hi Everyone!

Today’s card was created with some of the clear stamps from Lawn Fawn's Critters in the Burbs set. You can create a wonderful variety of cute and fun cards with the 18 adorable stamps in this set.

I used my Martha Stewart fringing scissors to create the grass that is growing on the hills. After snipping the original fringe I went back and cut between the middle of the original fringe to make the blades of grass even thinner.

I stamped some clouds with a light ink just so I could see them. I cut them out and used the backs of them on my card. You might wonder why. Well, I tried stamping clouds with white ink directly onto the sky paper I used as background paper on the card. They didn’t show up well enough for me. I am rarely happy with things I stamp with white ink. After I had cut out the clouds that I did use I used my paper piercer to make them look as if they were stitched onto the card. I sort of wish I had pierced the trees too. Oh, well. I can do that on another card.

I finally broke down and treated myself to some Copic markers. I heard you laughing Toni! Heck, it will give Robbie, Marie, and Jeanne something to give to me for Christmas and my birthday!

Anyway as I was saying I finally broke down and treated myself to some Copic markers. Before I went to the store I educated myself by watching lots of videos showing how to use them. I bought them because I feel I have gotten the hang of stamping, but that I am never happy with my coloring. I am very excited about my purchases. You may not understand what I am trying to say here, but I like the way the markers feel in my hands as I use them. The color goes onto the paper effortlessly.

Now in video after video that I watched it was suggested that you buy 3 markers in the same color range. I wanted to buy a few different colors so I only bought 2 of each in the color range. I wish I had gotten green markers with a wider contrast, but I didn’t have much choice at the store yesterday. I will buy an additional green marker on another day. Some of the markers I purchased are called "sketch" and others are called "original". I now know that I prefer the "sketch" ones. The nibs on the sketch markers feel like a paintbrush. I also bought a blender pen. I think it's wonderful! It takes away some of the color and creates a look that I like.

I know that my photograph doesn’t show the shading that I achieved and I know that my shading could be better, but I believe that I will get there one day. When I first started to stamp I had splotches of ink on my cards and on my hands. I’ve been stamping for about a year now and I am usually happy with my results.

I used glossy accents on the squirrel’s tail and on the dog’s tag. I think you can see that the apples on the trees were made with tiny red Favorite Findings buttons. Robbie didn’t like them. He thinks I shouldn’t have used buttons with holes on them. If you don’t like that look either you could use some red brads or red gems.

That’s it for today! Time to do some laundry and major housecleaning.
Carol

Songbirds

Hi Everyone!

Today I used paper from the dcwv Songbird 12" x 12" block to create some all occasion cards. There are 2 pages each of 18 designs in the block. One set of pages is filled with birdhouses that are different colors, sizes, and shapes. Some of them are glittered. I used some of those birdhouses on today’s cards and have lots of them left to use on another day. I think they’d look wonderful with a little holly on them for Christmas cards. I will try that one of these days. Oh, and a little snow on them would be great too! Maybe snow created with a white Puffy Velvet Fabric Marker.

The Songbird block is only available in Michaels. I saw some ideas for it on the dcwv blog.

I used a Hero Arts wooden stamp called "Sweet Bird" on this card. "Hello" was created with an A Muse Artstamp.

The other birds on these cards were created with stamps from the Hero Arts "Decorative Birds" set. There are 4 different birds in the set. Some have long legs and others have short ones. The legs can be masked and then some of the birds will appear to be flying.

The tiny bird on this card was created with the "Tiny Bird" stamp from A Muse Artstamps. "Happy Bird Day to You" is a stamp from Stampabilities.

Have a great night!
Carol

Gift Card Holders

Hi Everyone!

Talk about going out of your mind! We didn’t have cable TV or Internet service for more than 24 hours so I couldn’t read or write e-mails, couldn’t post my blog, and couldn’t read the blogs that I follow. I contacted our provider and was told that more than 4000 people didn’t have service. Happily everything is working again.

Sometimes, when you want to give someone a gift, it’s hard to know what they may want or need so you might decide to give them a gift card to a store or to their favorite restaurant. To personalize that gift card it’s nice to create a special holder for it. Today I thought I’d share some gift card holders that I recently created.

I found the template for this holiday stocking gift card holder on the Splitcoast Stampers web site. It was created by waltzingmouse. I adapted the template just a little to transform the stocking into a sock. I trimmed the sides of the stocking’s cuff to make it look more like the cuff on a sock. I crimped some scrapbook tag and glued it onto the cuff and also used it for the sock’s heel and toe. I used paper from the dcwv "Guy Paper Stack" for this sock. If you study the template you will see where the gift card is placed. When you lift up the sock’s cuff you will see the gift card. A greeting can be stamped on the inside of the cuff. This card will fit in a 4.75" x 6.5’’ standard envelope.

When I read the Hero Arts blog on Monday, I realized that it’s been a while (last one I made was on May 7 for a friend’s birthday) since I created a gift card holder with a pocket. To make this card I cut a sheet of 8.5" x 11" white tag so that it measured 4.25’" x 11". I used my Scor-Pal and scored a line at 1.75" and at 6.25". I folded the paper at the 1.75" line and put some Scor-Pal tape on the edges to create a pocket. I folded the paper along the 6.25" line to create the card. I used one of my Martha Stewart edger punches to create a decorative edge. I stamped the heart bouquet image from a Heartfelt Creations stamp onto some dcwv sky paper. I used my Marvy Twinklette markers to color the balloons. Then I filled in the balloons with Glossy Accents to give them dimension. The "Thanks a Bunch" stamp is from Stamp of Excellence. The gift card is placed in the pocket. It can be seen when you lift up the front of the card. This card will fit in an A2 envelope.


It’s not too early to be thinking about the holidays so why not give these ideas a try and turn them into gift card holders for the holidays. Talk to you soon!
Carol

This 'n That

Good Morning Everyone!

I decided to post today’s blog before the anticipated humidity settles in on us. I’ve just skimmed through my picture files and saw some photographs of cards that I have created recently, but haven’t shared with you.

I purchased the Debbie Mumm paper and embellishments that I used on these cards a few weeks ago. You’ve seen me use that paper over and over again. Even though the paper is from small blocks that are called "Baby Boy" and "Baby Girl" , I’ve used it on all sorts of cards. The paper and embellishments were in the clearance aisle of one of the craft chain stores and I scooped it up knowing it has tons of potential. Look at the paper I have used on these cards and you will understand what I am saying.

These clean and graphic cards deliver their message immediately. They were quick and easy to create. The text is from Inkadinkado’s Baby Boy and Baby Girl clear stamp sets.

The clouds on this card were created with a

Puffy Velvet Fabric Marker from Marvy Uchida. I used the marker to draw the clouds and then I heated them up with my heating gun. The paint from the marker puffed up nicely. Don’t get the gun too close to the paint because if you do you’ll have a toasted marshmallow effect. Hmm, guess that would work if you wanted to make some toasted marshmallows on a card!

I saw a card like this one displayed at InkAbout It in Westford, MA and on the Great Impression’s web site. I loved the way the waves were created with an EK Success dotted wave paper punch and knew I had some Recollections whale stickers at home, so I purchased the "Have a Whale of a Good Time" Great Impression's wooden stamp and the EK Success punch . I created the card shortly after I came home with my "new toys". I stamped the text on a scrap of white tag and then trimmed the tag to make it look like a cloud. I inked the edges of the cloud to make it stand out.

Okay! That’s a nice variety of ideas for you to try.

Stay cool!

Carol

Baskets of Fun

Hi Everyone!

Today’s cards were created with some stamp sets from Hero Arts. The basket and the flowers are 2 of the 3 stamps in the Sunny Smiles clings stamp set. The pineapple and the phrase "simply the best" are 2 of the 9 stamps in the Simply the Best clear stamps set.

I did some masking on both of today’s cards. I wanted the flowers to look as if they were in the basket. I wanted the pineapples to look as if they were in a basket and I wanted one pineapple to look as if it were behind 2 other pineapples.

For the card with the flowers in the basket I began by stamping the basket on a sheet of 4" x 5.25" white tag. Then I stamped the basket on a Post-it and cut it out. Look at the image of the basket. I trimmed the Post-it so only the front handles and front of the basket were intact. I then placed the Post-it on top of the image I had stamped on the white tag. Then I stamped the flowers. Some of the stems went on the Post-it and some went "in the basket." When I removed the Post-it , it looked as if the flowers were in the basket. I used Marvy Twinklette markers to color the basket and the flowers and then attached the white tag to a green A2 card.

I used Martha Stewart fringe scissors to create the grass on the card. If you’re unfamiliar with these scissors you may want to check them out the next time you are out shopping. Instead of the usual 2 blades, these scissors have 10 blades, five on each side that all cut at the same time. They are fun to use when you are creating grass, fringing, cutting confetti, etc.

I didn’t ink the back handles or the strip across the back of the picnic basket when I stamped the basket image for the second card onto white tag.

I used the same mask I created for the first card on the basket with pineapples card. I put the mask on top of the basket and then I stamped the pineapple that you see in the center of the basket. I stamped a pineapple on a Post-it and cut it out. I placed the Post-It pineapple on the pineapple I had stamped and put the mask for the basket on top of the stamped basket. Then I stamped a pineapple to the left and to the right of the original pineapple. After I colored in the pineapples and the basket I cut them out. I attached them to the "sky decorative paper" with thin pop dots. I used an EK Success dotted wave border punch to create the edging on the curtains.

I love that basket stamp and think it has lots of possiblities. Have a great night.
Carol

Happy Birthday Jeanne

Happy Birthday Jeanne!

Before I post the card I made for Jeanne’s birthday, I need to give you a little background information. My mother sewed most of her own clothes, but she loved to buy shoes. I remember playing with them when I was a child. My daughter Marie and my sister Jeanne love to buy shoes. It’s fun to see the shoes that they find. Me? I choose to go barefoot whenever I can. I prefer to spend my money on papercrafting supplies!

Click on an image to enlarge it!

I used clear stamps from Sweet ‘n Sassy’s "purses" and "shoes" collections to create this card for Jeanne’s birthday. My Scor-Pal helped me create a tri-fold card. I used Picksey Pick-Ups to help me pick up the jewels and place them on the flowers and shoes on the card. Even with the Picksey Pick-Ups it was a long slow process, but it was totally worth the time and effort. Jeanne LOVED her card.

These birthday cards were very quick and easy to create. The idea for them came from a book called The Big Book of Handmade Cards and Gift Wrap by Vivienne Bolton. I used AccuCut number dies to create the numbers for the card. I crimped each number before I attached it to a card. The "Look Who’s Turning" phrase was created with a stamp from the Bling 'Bers set from My Favorite Things.

Hope you have a great weekend!
Carol

Welcome Little Star

Hi Everyone!

A friend called and asked if I would make a card for a new baby girl. Tonight I will tell you how the card I created for her evolved.

I felt like using some dies to create the card so I looked through my collection. I found one of my favorites which is the moon wearing a nightcap and decided to use it.

I have several different sets of clear Inkadinkado baby stamps. In the baby boy set there is one stamp that says, "Little Star" and another that says, "Welcome, baby".

I thought for a while.

Hmm. Moon? Stars? Hmm. I love that moon die cut. Oh, wait...I have several star die cuts. Moon and stars? There’s no reason that a girl can’t be a "Little Star".

And that thinking lead to this card.

I used a Martha Stewart paper punch to create the bow on the large star. I punched out an additional bow and used my scanner to reduce the size of it so that it would fit the small star.
Added some rhinestones so that the moon and stars would "twinkle".

Change the colors and this could easily become a card for a new baby boy!
Enjoy!
Carol

Leftovers!

Hi Everyone!

Two or maybe even three years ago my friend, MaryBeth and I were browsing in one of the craft chain stores when we discovered some scrapbook paper in the clearance section. Some 8" blocks of paper had broken apart and were tied together with pieces of string. We both picked some up, purchased them, and brought them home. Many pieces of paper were bound with that string and so some 2 or 3 years later I still have a LOT of it left.

I decided to use that paper to create today’s cards. I grabbed blank cards,
my paper trimmer, scraps of tag, a sheet of rub-on letters, some silk flowers, scissors, Scor-Pal tape, and glue dots and got to work.

The photographs of these cards aren’t the quality that I’d like them to be. I need to remember to take photographs earlier in the day so that the light is better.
But, hopefully you’ll be inspired by a card or two!

Talk to you tomorrow!
Carol