tea-drinking stamper

I was so surprised when I realized the Snow Front doesn't have to be about snow! I used the cluster of dots that I'm sure are supposed to be snow flakes to serve as colored leaves on the trees. But I thought the scene I created was perfect for Thanksgiving so I borrowed the greeting from the retired Pleasant Pheasant stamp set. Products Used: Snow Front photopolymer stamp set (17), 150483, $22.00 Pleasant Pheasant retired stamp set Balmy Blue 8-1/2" x 11" card stock (24), 146982, $8.75 Cherry Cobbler 8-1/2" x 11" card stock (24), 119685, $8.75 Very Vanilla 8-1/2" x 11" card stock (40), 101650, $8.75 Balmy Blue Classic Stampin' Pad, 147105, $7.50 Cherry Cobbler Classic Stampin' Pad, 147083, $7.50 Basic Gray Classic Stampin' Pad, 149165, $7.50 Shaded Spruce Classic Stampin' Pad, 147088, $7.50 Call Me Clover Classic Stampin' Pad, 147139, $7.50 Soft Suede Classic Stampin' Pad, 147115, $7.50 Retired Cherry Cobbler...

Beauty & Joy is another of those stamp sets that is so versatile because it can be used for all seasons. This card, made at my October class, includes quite a bit of dry embossing. It's difficult to see the Pinewood Planks embossing on the Early Espresso card stock. Actually, I had originally designed the card using Soft Suede but cut Early Espresso for the class instead. It still looks good but, truth be told, I much prefer the original with the Soft Suede. But I have already given that one away without photographing it. That first one was a birthday card while this is a Thanksgiving/thank you card. I've actually used one of these, too. Products Used: Beauty & Joy photopolymer stamp set (13), 150518, $16.00 Very Vanilla 8-1/2" x 11" card stock (40), 101650, $9.75 Pumpkin Pie 8-1/2" x 11" card stock (24), 105117, $8.75 Crushed Curry 8-1/2" x 11" card stock (24), 131199, $8.75 Early Espresso 8-1/2" x 11" card stock (24), 11...

I had more fun playing with the Heirloom Frames Dies & 3D Embossing Folders and mixing them with the Beautiful Friendship stamp set. Lovely Lipstick is one of my very favorite colors and so I want to use it a lot before it leaves our book in June of 2020. My stamping for the first card was done using Lovely Lipstick, Garden Green and Basic Black.  You will notice I used old Candy Dots on this card. I had accumulated so many before they were discontinued that I have decided to use them whenever possible. The background paper is from last year's In Color pack. This year's catalog also includes packs of In Color dsp but with slightly different patterns, so this card could use one of those sheets and work just as well. This second card is done in Melon Mambo and Call Me Clover, another favorite In Color, with Basic Gray. I used a piece of discontinued Garden Impressions 6" x 6" Designer Series paper along the side and added Glitter Enamel Dots for a little e...

Today I'm sharing two of my very favorite cards - at least at the moment. We made the top card at my February card class and I taught them the blender pen technique used here to add some color to the images without completely filling them in. I'm loving that technique! I got the idea for these cards from the sample on page 49 of the Occasions catalog. I studied the picture long and hard before I figured out how the images were colored. I think I figured it out correctly... The way I taught my class was to stamp the image in the color we want. The flowers all had two colors, one for the blossom and one for the leaves, so we used our markers to color the rubber stamps. I used some of my acrylic blocks as well as my silicone craft sheet to hold ink so ladies didn't have to wait for access to the ink pad. I love that ability!  All I do is tap the blocks against the ink pads to pick up the ink or rub the ink pads along the surface of the silicone sheet (I could put several c...

Once I started using this stamp set, the ideas just kept coming, although I admit that I had been looking at samples on-line and I have no idea where parts of this design came from. I have a tendency to think that my images need to stay inside the shapes, like the ovals used here. However, this design element extended past the edges and it actually adds to the texture. Of course, the Stampin' Dimensionals behind it help. I knew as soon as this annual catalog came out that I would love the Tufted 3D Dynamic Textured Impressions Embossing Folder. Its use on the Cherry Cobbler background adds a depth and richness to the overall effect of the card. Although you can't see it looking at this picture, I used Wink of Stella on the white holly berries. Because of the layout, I needed smaller words than came with this set, so I used my other favorite stamp set, His Light. The red and greens in this card are Cherry Cobbler and Old Olive. As I write this, all my cards have been maile...

Simple elegance is how I would describe this card we made at my October stamp class. Easy to put together yet the use of gold made it sparkle. I fear the color didn't come through as well as I would have like it.  Believe it or not, the card and the background for the gold embossed words is Crumb Cake, even though it looks like gray.  I embossed the Berry Burst card stock using the Tin Tile Dybnamic Textured Impressions Embossing Folder and then smeared Gold Shimmer Paint all over the surface using a sponge dauber, although it barely shows on this picture. The rest is self-explanatory. If you saw yesterday's post, you also saw a variation of this card. Before assembling this card, the gold foil leaves were cut from the piece that backed our greeting. Saves paper, which also saves money. And no one would ever know unless they take the card apart. I have a group of ladies from church who come to my house once a month to make birthday cards for church family. But this month, ...

When designing cards for my August stamp class, I was anxious to play with my new embossing folder. I also wanted to show the different effects of colors for the same card. In the process, I also changed the layout somewhat of one of the cards. Here are the three cards: This is the card we actually made at class: The lighter cards are made with Very Vanilla, Powder Pink, Soft Sea Foam and Granny Apple Green, while the darker one uses Crumb Cake, Berry Burst and Call Me Clover. And the rose and leaves in this Distinktive set are so realistic and dimensional just in the way they turn out when inked. And I have to admit that we did have to fussy cut the flower and leaves, but I enjoy the process of fussy cutting even though some of my customers do not. Products Used: Healing Hugs rubber stamp set (9), W 146527, $29.00; C 146530, $21.00 Crumb Cake 8-1/2" x 11" card stock (24), 120953, $8.50 Berry Burst 8-1/2" x 11" card stock (24), 144243, $8.50 Ver...

Items from the Share What You Love Suite certainly don't need to be limited to the products contained in the suite. Here I have used the Lovely Floral embossing folder with retired designer paper and embellishment. Just love the soft look and I think that paper coordinates beautifully with the flower in the folder. Once again I added some Whisper White craft ink to the raised portion of the embossed flower, which I embossed on the top portion of the card. I had those adorable felt bows left over, along with some powder pink ribbon, and just had to add one to the front.  No greeting as yet, so this can either be a note card or I can add a greeting later. Products Used: Lovely Floral Dynamic Textured Impressions Embossing Folder, 148048, $9.00 Powder Pink 8-1/2" x 11" card stock (24), 144244, $8.50 Craft Stampin' Pad (uninked) & Refill, 147277, $9.50 Fresh Florals Designer Series Paper Stack, retired (2017-18 Annual Catalog) 2017-2019 In Color Bitty Bows...

Embossing folders can be used in so many ways. For this card, I sponged on white craft ink and then cut around the raised image, not something I do very often. A strip of dsp on the side and one of the new Pearlized Doilies made this a simple card to put together. As you can see from the shadows around the floral design, I mounted it to the card front with Stampin' Dimensionals. Products Used: Share What You Love 12" x 12" Specialty Designer Series Paper (24), 146926, $27.00 Mint Macaron 8-1/2" x 11" card stock (24), 138337, $8.50 Uninked Craft Stampin' Pad & Refill (White), 147277, $9.50 Lovely Floral Dynamic Textured Impressions Embossing Folder, 148048, $9.00 Pearlized Doilies (24), 146936, $4.50 Stampin' Dimensionals (300), 104430, $4.00 Mini Stampin' Dimensionals (720), 144108, $4.00

There are so many ways to use the Lovely Floral 3D Textured Impressions Embossing Folder included in the Share What You Love suite! I wanted to play with some of the  new colors as well as the embossing folder, so I used our Thick Whisper White card stock and then added color with our sponge daubers. The greeting on this card is from the Beautiful Bouquet stamp set.  I actually ordered the set because I love the greetings and the fonts used on them. Of course, I love flowers, but I already have so many floral sets and framelits, so if it hadn't been for those great greetings, I might not have purchased it. Or I would have at least tried to talk myself out of purchasing it... Products Used: Beautiful Bouquet photopolymer stamp set (37), 143666, $27.00 Lovely Floral 3D TIEF148048, $9.00 Petal Pair Embossing Folder (2), 145656, $9.00 Highland Heather 8-1/2" x 11" card stock (24), 146986, $8.50 Whisper White 8-1/2" x 11" thick card stock (24), 140272, $7....

I enjoy birds almost as much as I love butterflies. Birds seem to love our pussy willow tree out front and we have a bird feeder next to it where we can watch the birds. Granted, I wish I could find a food that the big black birds would leave alone, but I love watching the cardinals, the sparrows, the finches and the occasional blue jay. I need to get my hummingbird feeder hung now that it's finally warming up. So when the Flying Home stamp set appeared in the Occasions Catalog, it was one of my first purchases. As I was designing cards with retiring stamp sets and colors, I decided I wanted to make a card that did not need to be colored, even though I do enjoy coloring. I just wanted something different from what I usually see on-line and from what I've done before. So gold embossing seemed like the perfect solution.  Plus I could use the retiring ribbon and doilies. And those Sweet & Sassy Framelits that I had just bought are being discontinued, so I had to incorporate ...

I'm still working with stamp sets and colors that are leaving our catalog. My go-to stamp set, Thoughts & Prayers, for sympathy cards is on its way out. I've used one stamp from the Work of Art stamp set to add color to the background. With the exception of the Very Vanilla card stock, all colors used on these two cards are being discontinued.   For the first card, which we made at my April stamp class, We inked the "brush stroke" with Wild Wasabi just once, but stamped it three times, thus acquiring the different tones. We added Soft Sky across the top.   The "paintbrush strokes" on this card are done, from bottom up, in Wild Wasabi, Marina Mist, and Soft Sky. The Chocolate Chip ribbon has been discontinued. Products Used: Thoughts & Prayers rubber stamp set (8), W 128751, $26.00; C 127805, $19.00* Work of Art rubber stamp set (11), W 134111, $30.00; C 134114, $22.00* Very Vanilla 8-1/2" x 11" card stock (40), 101650, $9.00 Ch...

Rose Red and Always Artichoke are two colors I am really going to miss. I've used them both for this card, along with Pink Pirouette and Soft sky. I really like having punches to coordinate with our stamps. They are so much more portable than the Big Shot and dies.  Both tools facilitate adding layers and dimension to your cards. The base of this card is Soft Sky, as is the embossed layer which is popped up with Stampin' Dimensionals. The flowers are also popped up with dimensionals. I used quite a mix of items when I designed this card. Products Used: Flower Shop rubber stamp set (6), W 130939, $24.00; C 130942, $18.00 Thoughts & Prayers rubber stamp set (8), W 128751, $26.00; C 127805, $19.00 Whisper White 8-1/2" x 11" card stock (40), 100730, $9.00 Soft Sky 8-1/2" x 11" card stock (24), 131203, $8.00 Pink Pirouette 8-1/2" x 11" card stock (24), 111351, $8.00 Always Artichoke 8-1/2" x 11" card stock (24), 105119, $8.00...

Little did I know when I designed this card using outgoing In Colors, that the Flirty Flamingo would stay with us as a core color! Emerald Envy is leaving us, however. The Emerald Envy ribbon is from last year's catalog rather than the current one. I was also playing around with the new Stamparatus.  Although this stamp set comes with dies to cut out all the parts, I had thought it would be easier to simply stamp it. But I'm not sure I still think that. Products Used: Bike Ride photopolymer stamp set (24), 143716, $21.00 Beautiful Bouquet photopolymer stamp set (37), 143666, $27.00 Whisper White 8-1/2" x 11" card stock (40), 100730, $9.00 Flirty Flamingo 8-1/2" x 11" card stock (24), 141416, $8.00 Emerald Envy 8-1/2" x 11" card stock (24), 141415, $8.00 Basic Gray Archival Stampin' Pad, 140932, $7.00 Smoky Slate Classic Stampin' Pad, 131179, $6.50 Flirty Flamingo Classic Stampin' Pad, 141397, $6.50 Emerald Envy Classic St...

I had toyed with purchasing the Pretty Kitty and Bella & Friends stamp sets for some time and finally gave in when I had extra dollars for free product. I really like the birthday greeting because it has a message for inside that makes it special.  I was originally planning to make this card at my April class, but changed my mind, deciding to go with retiring products instead. Some of my favorite sets are leaving our catalog as well a some favorite colors. But the replacement colors are fantastic; I just wish I could keep the old along with the new! One reason for this card design is that I really wanted to use my new Stitched Shapes Framelits. The great thing about those framelits is that they coordinate with the Layering Squares, Ovals and Circles Framelits. The Basic Gray Shimmer ribbon is from the Sale-a-Bration catalog and is therefore no longer available.   I'm sharing two images variations of this card because I can't decide which one I like better—with the bann...

I have run out of sympathy cards and decided to use one of my newest Sale-a-Bration sets to make a couple. One has a more masculine feel than the other, but it is definitely the Pink Pirouette and Very Vanilla card that is my favorite. But I loved seeing how the Stampin' Blends worked on Smoky Slate card stock. This Sale-a-Bration product is actually available only as a bundle including a 5-piece rubber stamp set and an embossing folder. New this year are more valuable items available for free with the higher spending amount of $100.00.  There are still many items available for free with the lesser $50.00 purchase. What is interesting is that the Basket Weave Dynamic Textured Impressions Embossing Folder will be available alone in the 2018-19 annual catalog. (Blossoming Basket Bundle, W 147504, C 147505, free with $100 purchase). The Pink Pirouette card would work very well as an Easter card and the attendees at my stamp class next week will be given the option of making it for...

As I was preparing for the holiday bazaar, I was also trying to use up all those little pieces of card stock and dsp laying around my stamp room, some from kits I had cut for previous classes. This card was made from one of those kits and uses retired products. I loved this embossing folder from a couple years ago. Looking closely at it, I decided a Christmas tree would fit perfectly and used the tree from the Foxy Friends stamp set. I also have the retired Perfect Pines Framelits which fit the trees in the Foxy Friends stamp set. But when I stacked the pieces together, I realized the card needed something else to make it special. The Gold Metallic Thread was the perfect answer. I merely added a strip of Fast fuse in the center of the oval embossing and pressed my gold thread on that. Then I put a strip of dimensionals taken from the edges over the fast fuse and added the tree. The gold star was punched from our Gold Glimmer paper with a retired mini star punch. Amazing how much someth...

As I age, there seems to be a greater need for sympathy and thinking of you cards. My cousin, David, a couple years older than I am, was recently diagnosed with a form of Alzheimer's where he will lose his ability to speak. He's also finding he has to give up his beloved woodworking because he's more prone to accidents. Then there's a distant cousin who was diagnosed with bladder cancer, a different form from mine. He had his bladder removed (thankfully, I am now cancer free). Difficult times, probably somewhat scary. Both men know how to lean on God as they walk these challenging paths. Anyway, I made essentially the same card for both men. And I experimented with this stamp. I think the result looks somewhat like watercolor, but in reality I used my sponge daubers to add the color. It also gives the barn a slightly old and faded look. I realize, however, that I put the embossed piece on backwards, but it still looks good. Note: it's important to cut the ova...

I bought the "Heartland" stamp set specifically for the little boy with his geese. The image just appeals to me. I like the other images, too, especially the barn. But the boy is tops with me. So I set about designing a card with that design in mind and had great fun framing the image after I water colored it. I have started heat setting my Archival Ink to be sure it won't bleed at all. Usually there is no problem, but some colors seem to cause bleeding (mostly yellows, it seems). My primary colors are Emerald Envy and Dapper Denim. And I'm loving the "Layered Leaves" 3D Dynamic Textured Impressions Embossing Folder! In fact, I now have all the 3D folders except "Ruffled". Eventually. That one reminds me of a tiled roof. I used Powder Pink for the boy's skin and a few highlights on the geese, taking care not to get too much ink on my Aqua Painter.  It's important to cut the circle from the Emerald Envy card stock using the embossi...

Last week I had a group of little girls come to my house to make some cards. I developed three different cards. The little girls lost interest after two cards, but the older ones made three with no problem and one actually wanted to make more. So my challenge was to make fairly simple yet nice cards. Admittedly, the prep for this class was more time consuming than those classes I do for adults. The class was organized because one mom wanted her girls to make thank you cards. This  card was designed with that in mind. My thought was that the fireflies in the jar were thankful to be set free; hence the jar lid propped against the jar itself. Knowing that these were not prospective buyers, I used some of my retired products that have been laying around, like the Naturals White and Lost Lagoon card stocks. I even had some leftover Lost Lagoon ribbon, which I added in the form of a bow on the neck of the jar after scanning this card. The stamps are current (Jar of Love), although th...