Chalkboard Technique

This card uses the chalkboard technique. To do this, start with dark cardstock (such as black or navy). Stamp your solid image with white craft ink then dab chalk over the whole image until it's covered solidly. I used a cotton swab. Be sure to dab and not rub or the design may smear. Then stamp your outline image on top in white craft ink and heat set. You could also outline the image with the white gel pen. It's that simple! So get those chalks out and give it a try.
Supplies (all SU): Stamps: Pick A Petal, Double Line Doodles; Paper: Bashful Blue, So Saffron, Lavender Lace, Night of Navy; Inks: whisper white craft, Night of Navy; Accessories: Stampin' Pastels, word window punch
I've created a Word document with a diagram and directions for the lip balm holder, but I can't post it here. If you would like a copy, please e-mail me, and I'll send it to you. I also want to thank Renee Ondrajka, who posted the original diagram that I altered.

I Think I'm Gonna Faint!

Julie HRR (Her Royal Rubberness) commented on one of my cards!! For those of you who don't know, Julie runs herd on the Dirty Dozen on SCS, and just like her name implies, she is stamping royalty. This ranks right up with meeting Shelli Gardner. It was the card I posted 2 days ago with the big flower on it. I made that card for Jenn Balcer's Dare to Get Dirty challenge of making a bright and cheery card. Julie said, "Sweetly simple, and charming!", and the fabulous Jenn Balcer said, "Yes it is perfect! The paper, the ginormous silk flower, the sentiment. . . . they all say happy happy joy joy!" As Wayne and Garth would say, "I'm not worthy..."

Lip Balm Holder

When I saw this lip balm holder on SCS, I thought of my MIL, Shirley, right away because she sells Avon. I think this is just adorable! (Goodness, I'm starting to sound like JanTInk! LOL) I did have to fiddle with the pattern to fit this lip balm, but I did not give up! I persisted through 3 failed attempts, and I didn't even throw anything! And I used some of my brand-new purty ribbon and paper instead of hoarding it. Now that I have made one AND made notes on my measurements, I think it would be fairly easy to make multiples of this. Of course, the cuts on the inside to hold the lip balm are the tricky part. I have never drawn a sketch on the computer, but I will try to do this and post it in case you want to make one. In case you are wondering, the dimensions of the front are 4" tall and 2 3/8" across, and the spine measures 3/4". I thought the saying was very appropriate!
Would you make one of these if you had a template to follow? Let me know by e-mail or comment!
Supplies (all SU unless noted): Stamps: Polka Dots & Petals, Polka Dots & Paisley, Be Happy; Paper: Whisper White, Bashful Blue, Certainly Celery, Cutie Pie designer paper; Inks: Bashful Blue, Regal Rose; Accessories: Fairy Tale Ribbon Originals, lip balm (Avon)

Dare to be a Dirty Girl Challenge card

Hopefully, you're not sick to death of me talking about Splitcoaststampers! (If you are, don't read any further.) Splitcoaststampers is an awesome forum for stampers and scrapbookers. Tracy and Daven Nolta, who run the site, started it long ago for the demonstrators in Tracy's downline, and it has grown into the most popular stamping site around. Membership at SCS is free, believe it or not! To support the site, I am a paid member. As a bonus for paid members, an amazingly talented group called the Dirty Dozen makes projects posted once a month, and you only have access to that gallery if you are a paid member. This is the 3rd anniversary of the Dirty Dozen, so they are having a week of special challenges, 4 each weekday and 8 on Saturday and Sunday. I made this card combining 2 challenges into 1. The first challenge was the sketch or layout of the card. The other challenge was to use tons of pink. While the whole card isn't pink, I did get pink on every layer. The sketch was tough for me as I don't usually use that many layers. It started out differently, but I think it turned out OK. It's much busier than what I usually do, but I am Daring to be a Dirty Girl!

Sorry about the picture quality. I am using Daniel's camera, and I'm having trouble getting used to the lighting/flash differences as compared to my other camera.

Coming tomorrow: a project made specifically with my mother-in-law in mind, and it's not a card!

Supplies (all SU): Stamps: Bodacious Bouquet, Polka Dots & Paisley, Polka Dots & Petals; Paper: Whisper White, Certainly Celery, Regal Rose, Petals & Paisley DSP; Ink: Regal Rose, Certainly Celery, Taken with Teal, Pretty in Pink; Accessories: Fairy Tale Ribbon Originals

I Actually Stamped Today

Not much stamping is on THIS card, but I stamped today! Got 3 projects done. (Not the 2 swaps I need to get done, but still!) So I'll actually have some things to post for the next few days. Hooray! This card uses 3 new products from the Fall/Winter Collection: Pretties kit, Cutie Pie double-sided designer paper, and Fairy Tale Ribbon Originals. The Cutie Pie paper doesn't look like much in the catty, but it is a big wow IRL. And 3 of the 5 ribbons in the Fairy Tale set coordinate with this paper. This card only took 5 minutes to make, and I really like it. I hope you do too!
Supplies (all SU): Stamps: Be Happy; Paper: Bashful Blue, So Saffron, Cutie Pie DSP; Ink: Cerainly Celery; Accessories: Pretties kit, Fairy Fale Ribbon Originals, ticket corner punch, 1 1/4 & 1 3/8 circle punches

SU's August special

For the month of August, Stampin' Up is having a special with the punch box. When your purchase the punch box August 1-31, you will also get a package of 30 Love Notes free ($12.95 value). Love Notes are 3 X 3 cards. These Love Notes are made from textured cardstock, and you get 10 each of Purely Pomegranate, Wild Wasabi, and So Saffron. Envelopes are also included.

On a blogging note, I had my first spam comment, so I have had to add comment verification. I hate trying to read those wavy numbers and letters, so I'm sorry!

Are you tired of pictures of Europe yet?

I'll try to wrap up the pictures from Europe. A lot of the ones that are left are of all of the kids wearing the pink beret. You don't want to suffer through those, believe me! Daniel's a little fuzzy on what a lot of the pictures are. So here are the remaining highlights.
Sorry I haven't posted any cards lately. My craft room is the hottest room in the house, and I've also had major creative block. I just can't seem to work out this one card I'm trying to do. Hopefully, this weekend!
I see my site counter is over 300 now. Thanks for your support!


The Alps

Inside Versailles

View from atop the Eiffel Tower

Notre Dame

Mona Lisa

Europe again!

A glass blower in Murano.

The vase Daniel got for me in Murano. It's decorated with 24kt gold.

Mauthausen concentration camp in Austria

The cemetary where the VonTrapp family hid from the Nazis in The Sound of Music

Finally, a card!

One of my supervisors at work is also a ship captain. She works on the Vista King, which tours the harbor here. So when I saw this set, I knew it would be perfect for a card for her. When I make a card for work, the hard part is the size. I make a 5 1/2 X 8 1/2 card so everyone has room to sign. Well, that's twice the size of the cards I usually make! I used all of the sayings from this set plus one from Loads of Love Accessories as my background. I also used the presents from Loads of Love Acc. in the boat. This is the first time I've watercolored on Shimmery White. The great thing is that the coating on it keeps the cardstock from buckling too much. One part that I had a little trouble with was watercoloring with ink for the sky and water; I ended up with some lines in the water that I couldn't smooth out. So I used the blender pen and ink to make more waves to cover up the lines. You can see a few lines in the sky, but they aren't too bad. For all of the other colors, I used the watercolor crayons and had no trouble with them at all.

Supplies (all SU): Stamps: Boatloads of Love, Loads of Love Accessories; Paper: Shimmery White, Soft Sky, Blue Bayou; Ink: StazOn Black, Soft Sky, Blue Bayou; Accessories: watercolor wonder crayons, aquapainter, blender pen, ticket corner punch

More photos from Italy

The Vatican. No photos were allowed in the Sistine Chapel.

A replica of David in Florence. No photos were allowed of the original.

Pisa

The view from the gondola in Venice. Their gondolier didn't sing, but he did smoke all the time!

Rome

The Coliseum

These are actually tunnels that were originally underneath the Coliseum floor.The Forum


Marae and Daniel throw a coin into Trevi Fountain, ensuring their return to Rome.

Sorry, no stamping today. I was up late reading Harry Potter then the youth group went bowling after church. I still haven't broken 100, but at least I beat Daniel! He did much better in the 2nd game. After all that, I took a nap.

Daniel's home!!

Daniel made it home safely! He does look taller, and he did get a pink beret! LOL (It's a souvenir for Danielle.) I took a picture of him wearing it at the airport. I'll post it later. I'm uploading his 250 pictures right now. This picture was from Carl, the delegation leader. He said their tour guide said this was one of the nicest groups he'd ever had!

And here's Daniel in the pink beret! He got pictures of lots of people on the trip wearing it, including the bus driver. He also took a picture of his friend, Earl, wearing it after we got home today.

Limited Supplies Challenge

I don't get to participate in the challenges on SCS as much as I'd like, but today I did! Friday is the Limited Supplies Challenge, and the challenge was to make a monochromatic card. Since I am loving my new Basic Gray paper, ink and ribbon, I decided to use that.

Supplies (all SU): Stamps: Baroque Motifs; Paper: Going Gray, Basic Gray; Ink: Going Gray, Basic Gray, Whisper White Craft; Accessories: scallop circle punch, double circle punch, Pretties kit, basic gray taffeta ribbon, dimensionals

Daniel update: His flight from Paris has landed in Cincinnati. He has a 5 hour layover before his flight leaves for Minneapolis. One of the girls on the trip posted onto our parents forum from the Paris airport. She said that Daniel said "W00t!" (no surprise there!) and that he bought a pink beret. I hope he's wearing it when I see him; I'm putting my camera in my purse right now!

Playing with my new stuff

I was finally able to sit down and play a little tonight. I love, love, love the new Basic Gray color! I also love the new Pretties kit. I was proud of myself. I used not one but two flowers from the kit plus a half-pearl center for the flower. I first tried coloring it with the aquapainter and watercolor crayons, but I wanted a bit deeper color. So I ended up using ink and the aquapainter. This isn't the card I set out to make, but I like it.

Supplies (all SU): Stamps: Warm Words, Weathered BG; Inks: Lavender Lace, Basic Gray; Paper: Lavender Lace, Charbon designer paper; Accessories: word window punch, Pretties kit, Basic Gray taffeta ribbon, aquapainter

Daniel's coming home tomorrow! I'm driving down to Minneapolis to get him, and we're staying overnight with my in-laws since Daniel's flight doesn't get in until almost 10PM. I have tomorrow off from work, so I'll try to post before I leave.

Holiday Mini Coming Soon!

I know that the new catalog has just arrived, but the time for the Holiday Mini is already approaching! SU demonstrators just got to see the new Mini online yesterday. We can preorder during August, and you can order from it from September 1 through November 30th. The big surprise is that all of the stamps in the Holiday Mini are die-cut, so all you have to do is punch them out and mount them. There's a wide variety for winter, Christmas, Halloween and fall. There are 2 great sets of designer paper, 1 for Christmas and 1 for fall. There is also wrapping paper, satin ribbon that's almost an inch wide, elastic cord, pre-made gift card holders, and 2 sets of chipboard. Wow!

The other big news is that Sellabration will be February 1 through March 17, 2008. This is also when the Occasions Mini will be out (takes the place of the Spring Mini).

Well, I haven't been able to stamp much as I had 2 workshops to prepare plus I had a workshop on Monday night. We made the tab punch fish card, the vellum card with the cross and eyelets, and a Baroque Motifs card I posted a while ago. We had a great time! All of my stampers are so much fun, and Louise served us yummy homemade chocolate chip cookies.

SU Convention is coming up, and while I can't attend, I have paired up with a demonstrator who is kind enough to share her pictures and notes with me. So I am sending her a care package. I decorated my tag punch box and put in some adhesives, very vanilla grosgrain ribbon, tabs for her catalog, and an explosion box filled with scallop circles I punched out in several colors.

I used Petals and Paisley designer paper and stamped her name in Wild Wasabi, Purely Pomegranate, Tempting Turquoise and Regal Rose.

I'm hoping to play with more of my new stuff tomorrow night and Friday. I took Friday off to go pick Daniel up from the airport. So stay tuned!

Pretty, Easy Card

This card actually turned out pretty much like I had it pictured in my head. Of course, I originally pictured it in purple, but I am trying to use other colors most of the time so I don't get in a rut. I chose the color combo from the SU Color Wheel; I thought it seemed soothing but not too somber. Using the Crop-a-dile made setting the eyelets easy since it has a depth gauge you can set anywhere from 1/8- 1 " in. Next time, I would probably make the vellum a little smaller, more in proportion to the size of the cross image.

Supplies (all SU): Stamps: Refuge and Strength; Paper: Brocade Blue, vellum cs; Ink: Brocade Blue, Night of Navy; Accessories: metallic eyelets, crop-a-dile

Simple but Pretty

How often do I ever make a no-layer card? Never! But I recently did a trade with Lori Bohler, a demo in Crookston, and she sent me a gorgeous yet simple thank you card. Thanks, Lori! Her card used Delight in Life from the last SAB, and it was Rose Red. I decided to use a current set and some shade of purple. (I went way out on a limb with that color choice! LOL) I'm so happy that Bud Basics and its matching jumbo wheel made the new catty! Using the jumbo wheel and the stamps to fill in makes covering a large area so easy. The next time I make this card, I think I'll stamp the sentiment first and then stamp around it. I might also use a darker color for the outline and sentiment, using a 2 step color combo from the color wheel.

Supplies (all SU): Stamps: Bud Basics, Hugs & Wishes; Paper: Naturals White; Ink: Lavender Lace

Another parent posted that her daughter called today. It hit 100 degrees in Salzburg today, and their hotel has no air conditioning. Ick!

I spent the afternoon getting the stuff ready for Mama's workshop, so I can get it in the mail. (She lives in Georgia. Hi, Mama!) My group here is meeting on Monday, so I have to prepare for that too. Guess that means I should decide what that last project is going to be!

By the way, if you have any questions or suggestions on what you'd like to see here, feel free to e-mail me or comment!

Cards for my nephews

My nephews are turning 21 on Sunday. It's hard to believe they've grown up so fast, and it's hard to make cards for men of that age. Jake's card is perfect for him; he's definitely a star! I don't know if Dane's card is perfect for him, but do 21-year-old guys really care about a card anyway? At least they know I took the time to make something especially for them.

Jake's card (all SU): Stamps: All Through the Year, Rough Edges alphabet; Paper: Soft Sky; Ink: Soft Sky, Real Red, Summer Sun craft; Accessories: On Board Accents, Real Red narrow grosgrain ribbon

Dane's card (all SU): Stamps: It's Your Birthday; Paper: Glossy white, Old Olive, More Mustard; Ink: Versamark, StazOn Black, Pumpkin Patch Spectrum; Accessories: brayer

Daniel is heading to Innsbruck tomorrow, where he will get to bobsled! They are also going down inside a salt mine. He'll be home a week from today. I can't wait to see him!

I've Been Tagged!

Patti from http://hugsnstuff.blogspot.com has tagged me! I'm supposed to tell 7 random things about myself and then tag other bloggers. Hmm, don't know if I have 7 interesting things to tell, but I'll try.
1. I love Krispy Kreme doughnuts, especially the ones with chocolate on top. (Mmmm, donuts..., as Homer would say.)
2. I have a collection of Nancy Drew books from when I was a girl. (Thanks to Shirley, my MIL, who has made it her mission to find the ones I'm missing!)
3. I enjoy DDR although I'm not very good.
4. I have never been to or through Iowa.
5. I don't like to ride roller coasters.
6. I've only been stamping for about 6 years, but I did lots of other kinds of crafts before.
7. In 1984, I was a counselor at the Beverly Hills YMCA day camp.

I'm tagging:
1. Sharon http://stampwithsharonrogers.typepad.com/
2. Alesha http://aleshawalls.blogspot.com/
3. Diane http://djluvs2stamp.blogspot.com/
4. Emily http://www.stampingwithemily.blogspot.com/
5. Emily http://stampingexpressions.blogspot.com/

New Stamps!

Here's a card I started working on in the dark! I originally had a guava base and decided it was too much, so I changed to a white background to make the flowers stand out a little more. I think it looks better IRL. I told Mama that I dreamed about guava and lavender as a color combo. Well, I ended up with guava and amethyst, and I like it!

Supplies (all SU): Stamps: Little Flowers, Big Flowers, On the Spot BG; Paper: Naturals White, Groovy Guava, Almost Amethyst, Certainly Celery, Almost Amethyst Prints designer paper; Ink: Groovy Guava, Almost Amethyst, Certainly Celery; Accessories: paper crimper, Crop-a-dile, pewter jumbo eyelets, 1/2" & 1 3/8" circle punches, scallop circle punch

Daniel called!

Daniel finally called this morning a little after 6:00. I had posted on our parents forum that I hadn't heard from him, and he said one of the girls told him to call me! He said he was going to call anyway, but I only have his word for that... He said the castle was the highlight so far; it was as good as explosions. I thought at first he was saying there were explosions, so I'm glad I got that straightened out! They weren't able to do the homestays, so they are at a guesthouse instead. It's apparently like a mansion with a soccer field and game room. One of the other parents posted that there will be a dance tonight. I guess I'm not too surprised that Daniel didn't mention that!
My cable is out since the windstorm on Tuesday, so I should definitely get some stamping done tonight! I started one card, but it needs some tweaking to make it just right. I'll do my best to post something tonight.

Shadow Box Card

Sorry, I haven't been able to really stamp lately. Today, the power was out for 6 hours, just came back about an hour and a half ago. Tomorrow night, I have book club. Hopefully, I can get something new new for you on Thursday.

I made this shadow box card a while back. They are really cool! It's the size of a regular card, and the 2 pieces are scored so the card stands up and looks 3D, but it can be pushed flat for mailing. I got the original directions from Dawn Griffith's blog (see link at right).

Supplies (all SU): Stamps: Lovely as a Tree; Inks: StazOn Black; Paper: Confetti White, Mellow Moss; Accessories: Coluzzle, watercolor wonder crayons, aquapainter

I still haven't heard from Daniel. Several other parents haven't heard from their teen since 4th of July. Apparently, they can't use the hotel phones, and it's hard to find pay phones. I guess it's hard to imagine Daniel would put forth a lot of effort for that, but I really would like to hear from him! They are in Austria now.

Daniel Update

Well, I still haven't heard from that dang son of mine! Several other parents have had a phone call, and one had an e-mail too. Yesterday, they were in Florence and saw Michelangelo's David. Then they drove to Venice and swam in the Adriatic Sea. Today was spent in Venice. I can track him by his debit card use now. He ate at a Chef Express and took out cash at an ATM. There are no secrets in this technological age! LOL!

Joy Fold Challenge

Sometimes I just can't make a decent card no matter what I try! When that happens, a great way to jump start my creativity is to try a challenge. Most often, I go to the challenges on SCS. They have a different challenge every day of the week. This card is a sketch challenge from Beate's blog (link at right). It's called a Joy Fold card, and the first one I saw was by 11Valerie11 (link to her blog is also at right). I've never made one but always wanted to, so today was the day. The card has 2 flaps of different sizes facing each other. Here's a picture of how it opens.

I got the color combo from SU's new In Color Color Combo sheet. It was supposed to have Old Olive also, but I just couldn't work it in. The teal layer is 5 1/2 X 4 1/4, the white layer is 5 1/4 X 4. The patterned paper layer is 5 1/4 X 4, scored at 2 1/4. I punched the slit through both layers and then adhered the short flap behind the white. The white layer is stamped with a doodle in Soft Sky. I thought it gave a mirror image to the paper. The lavender layer is 3 X 8 1/2, scored at 4 1/2 with the shorter end on the outside. I stamped the smaller flower from Doodle This on the 3 colors of cardstock with StazOn then colored areas in with the gel pen. (Got that idea from the new catalog!) The fiber is dyed with Soft Sky ink.

Supplies (all SU): Stamps: Doodle This, Polka Dots & Paisley; Paper: Whisper White, Lavender Lace, Taken with Teal, Soft Sky, Soft Sky Prints Designer; Ink: Jet black StazOn, Soft Sky, Taken with Teal; Accessories: slit punch, Bella fiber, white gel pen

My mom had trouble picturing how the card went together, so here's a picture of the inside fully open. The smaller part of the patterned paper is adhered to the back of the white piece. Let me know if you have any more questions!

It's Not Perfect...

I never could get a clear picture of this card, so this will have to do. The ladybug's wings are the dotted petal from Pick A Petal. I tried using craft ink on black cardstock, but it was too dark. So I used craft ink on white cardstock, embossed with clear EP, and sponged black ink over the whole thing. The card seems a little too plain to me. It needs something, but I'm not sure what it is. Your suggestions are welcome!

Supplies (all SU except Sharpie): Stamps: Pick A Petal, Warm Words; Ink: Ruby Red craft, Basic Black, Wild Wasabi; Paper: Whisper White, Basic Black, Soft Sky, Certainly Celery; Accessories: ultra fine black Sharpie, 3/4" and 1 3/8" circle punches

Still no word from Daniel. They went to the Vatican yesterday, and they were supposed to travel to Pisa today.

I Give Up...

Apparently, I am just not supposed to stamp today because nothing I've tried has gone right. So I give up! Things started out pretty well. I made a ladybug using the dotted petal from Pick A Petal. (You've probably seen those on SCS. That's where I got the idea.) But I just couldn't come up with a card that looked right. So I went and read for a while. When I came back, I still couldn't get it right. So I made a card with PAP as a tulip. (Also CASEd from SCS.) That didn't come out right either, not bad but not great either. So I finished the card above, which I started about 3 months ago at stamping night at my church back when all the supplies were current! All I did today was glue on the flowers, which were already cut out. Then I finished the ladybug card. It turned out pretty well, but I can't get a clear picture of it! I've taken 5 pictures, and they are all blurry no matter what I try. As Scarlett would say, "I'll think about that tomorrow...".
Supplies (all SU): Stamps: Polka Dots & Paisley; Paper: Cool Caribbean long notes (retired), Petals & Paisley DS paper; Ink: Certainly Celery, Pretty in Pink, Taken with Teal, StazOn Black; Accessories: rounded tab punch, Little Reminders Accents & Elements (retired)

The Latest from Europe

The delegation leader for Daniel's trip has called the mom in charge of the phone tree every day so far. I hope that continues! We have a forum set up where we can post when we hear from them. On Monday, they went to the Forum and the Colosseum. Yesterday, they went to the catacombs then had a treasure hunt that took them all over Rome. Doesn't that sound fantastic??? Today, they are going to the Vatican. I'll post whenever I hear more.
I promise I will make some cards today, and I'll do my best to post one before the end of the day.

Glitter Window Card

Last night was my new catalog open house. Thanks to all of the ladies who came. I had so much fun, and I hope you did too!
Here is a card I made a while ago for a demo only challenge on SCS. This card has a glitter window. A glitter window is made from packing tape and is covered with glitter. Let me know if you'd like a tutorial on that.
Supplies (all SU except packing tape): Stamps: Doodle This; Paper: Whisper White, Pale Plum, Perfect Plum, Mellow Moss; Inks: Perfect Plum, Jet Black StazOn, Pale Plum; Accessories: packing tape, moss gingham ribbon, white gel pen, 1 3/8" square punch, slot punch, Dazzling Diamonds glitter

Daniel's gone... (sob!)

I drove Daniel to Minneapolis today. He is gone to Europe for 20 days as a People to People Student Ambassador. I only teared up twice before he left.
Now, it's just me with Birkie, my devil cat, and Lady, my blind Labrador retriever. That sounds so pitiful, doesn't it?
Whenever I pack a suitcase, Birkie knows something is up, and he doesn't like it! So he decided to get on top of Daniel's suitcase to keep him from leaving. I also took a picture of Daniel in his official PTP shirt. He refused to smile because he said ambassadors don't smile.

Okay, now back to stamping! The centerpiece of this card was inspired by Lisa Somerville. (Her blog link is over on the right.) It's the square from Baroque Motifs. I inked it with Wild Wasabi and then kissed it twice to the swirl from Baroque Motifs (uninked). This pulled some of the ink off, making the stamped image look aged.

Supplies (All SU): Stamps: Baroque Motifs; Paper: Whisper White, River Rock, Wild Wasabi; Ink: Wild Wasabi; Accessories: Ice Circle Rhinestone Brads