Do you like the “Like” button?

Oct 1, 2010

Hey!  Did you know that if you see something posted here that you like, you can "Like" the post and share it with your Facebook friends?  You'll find the "Like" button right below each of my postings. 

AND you can even "Like" this whole entire blog (the link's over in the left-hand column), and once you do that, my future postings will appear on your Facebook home page! Not on your profile for everyone else to see, but on your home page for you to see.

So won't you "Like" me in some way?  Pretty-please? 

Evolution of a swap card

Sep 29, 2010

Ok.  So every month the demonstrators in my downline group and I swap cards among ourselves. We generally have a theme of some type, and in September our theme was "showcasing products from the Holiday Mini Catalog".  Seems logical enough, right?

Well I knew right away that I was going to use the stencil on page 22, figuring that most of the other swappers would stick with stamps, Designer Papers, and Big Shot dies to feature.

So I ordered the stencil early on and then began formulating an idea – in my head, confident that I was really ahead of the game because I had things pretty much laid out – in my head.

So a week or so before the cards were due, I sat down to stamp.  First I made what was in my head…...

Evolution1

….. and was completely unimpressed – and couldn't go any farther.

Then I tried switching to a colored image on a neutral background.

Evolution2

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hmmmm…… I liked the effect much better, but still couldn't figure out where to go from there.

Maybe something more subtle….. like for a background……

Evolution2a

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yes!  Now THAT was real pretty.  (Especially since somehow I'd gotten some glittery stuff on the sponge I was using, so even though it doesn't show in the picture, it's not only tone-on-tone, but glittery as well.)   But pretty as it was, I STILL couldn't figure out where to go from there!

So I thought about it for a couple of days…… knowing I like the looks of the tone on tone….. but it still needed a focal point…… a reason for being, if you will. 

Ok, then.  About that time I was starting to gear up into Christmas card mode because of the Stamping for the Troops event I'm planning for this upcoming weekend, and so maybe if I just made ONE card to contribute to the cause, I could at least use this idea for one of the layers and not feel like I'd wasted all this effort and time.  So I tinkered and fiddled some more – and eventually came up with this ONE card……

Evolution3

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

……. which I think is perfectly acceptable to contribute to the Stamping for the Troops project – and so into the pile  for THAT it went.  It still wasn't appropriate for this particular swap theme, though - and definitely not worth making 10 of, but at least I'd succeeded in making a card from start to finish.

WHEW!

And then I went back to thinking about my swap cards.  I had a case of Stamper's Block something fierce!  WhatEVER was I going to do with that darn stencil?!?

FINALLY I figured out what to do with it!  I packaged it back up, and carefully slipped it into the Craft Keeper in which I keep the rest of my stencils…… and carried it in and put it on the shelf in my studio.

Resolved. 

Then I got out all kinds of glittery "fun" stuff – including this new waffle paper that I just adore……

P9220002a

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

and my aquapainters (always a good "fall-back" idea),

and watercolored a bunch of bells from Bells & Boughs…….

P9220002

 

 

 

 

 

 

….. and then put my head down…….

…… and with a final push of determination succeeded in designing my REAL swap cards!

P9230012

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here's what it looks like close-up……

P9230017

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So what do you think?  Can you see the similarities?

Evolution1   P9230017

Got any great stories of your own stamper's block you'd care to share?  Leave me a comment; I'd love to hear 'em!

Holiday Gift coming to my mailing list subscribers

Sep 28, 2010

12-weeks-xmas-banner-dual-l

I'm so excited to finally "officially" get to announce my 2010 "12 Weeks of Christmas" series – coming this Friday to an inbox near you!  Some of you already know I've been hard at work as part of a focused design team co-op to produce this outstanding series of project ideas for our customers.  And I just saw everybody's results last night – and let me tell ya, you're not gonna be disappointed!!! 

Here's what it's all about: 

Every week, beginning this coming Friday, Oct. 1, and continuing for 12 weeks (which takes us just about up until Christmas week – yikes, can you believe it?)……. subscribers to my mailing list will get an exclusive email featuring a specific Christmas-focused project.  There'll be some Christmas cards, and some gift ideas, and then we'll work our way into packaging and tags as the big day gets closer.  Each mailing will include a list of the supplies used on the project being featured, as well as provide a tutorial for how to make it. 

Sound cool?!?

Well here's something ELSE cool!  If you're already a subscriber to my mailing list, this year you don't even have to do a thing!  No subscribing to another special list or anything – 'cuz this year EVERYONE on my mailing list will be getting this series of projects – as a special holiday gift from me!

So here's what this means if you're reading this article but you're not yet on my mailing list:  you have exactly 2 days to fix that if you don't want to miss Friday's first issue!  So either race back up to the top left-hand corner of this page, or click here to take you to a real simple black and white, no-frills, no-distractions sign-up page.  Then fill in your email address (make sure you type it correctly), click the "join" button and you'll be off and running on the path to getting signed up. (Honestly, I think it just took me longer to type all that and set up the links than it'll take you to get yourself signed up, lol!)

Then tell your very best friends to get signed up, too (just copy and paste this URL and send 'em to this page: http://stamptherock.typepad.com/pages/mailing-list-sign-up.html ) - and then sit back and wait for your first issue of my 12 Weeks of Christmas to arrive in your mailbox – due-in about 1:00 pm or thereabouts (Eastern time zone) – on Friday, Oct. 1st! 

Greeting Card Kids Halloween – Stamp-a-Stack card

Sep 23, 2010

P9100004  Here's another one of the cards from my September Stamp-a-Stack.   It features one of the images from the stamp set Greeting Card Kids (oh, how I adore that charming stamp set!)….. and a bunch of watercolored colors.

The white paper is actually Shimmery White – our 2nd-best cardstock for watercoloring on.  (Watercolor paper is the absolute best, of course, but I'd discovered I didn't have enough on hand to supply all our Stamp-a-Stackers.)

There are still some spaces available for both Friday sessions of October's Stamp-a-Stack (October 1st).  Saturday is filled to capacity, but both Friday morning and evening sessions still have room.  Call me soon if you'd like to join us!

Candy Wrapper Die

Sep 21, 2010

P9210006 I finally took some time to play with my new Candy Wrapper Die!  It took a bit of practice to figure out how to twist the ends, but it was actually easier than I expected.  It's important to crease firmly on all the scored lines before assembling it, and then I found it easiest to place a finger between each of the 4 sections on each end…. then push in (towards the center of the box), and twist.  You can almost feel it "lock" when you do it right.  The whole process gets easier as the cardstock softens with handling – so it's fine to open it up and close it again.

I decorated these with the Spooky Night Rub-ons (page 8 of the Holiday Mini Catalog)…… and my cardstock colors are Basic Black, Old Olive, Pear Pizzazz, and Peach Parfait.  I also used a sliver of Pear Pizzazz Designer Series Paper (Hostess Level 1 gift) as the top layer band on the Peach Parfait box on the left.  I'm quite impressed with the size of these little boxes; they look like they'd accommodate several pieces of candy each.  (I put 3 individually wrapped Life Saver candies in one – and probably could have fit more inside.) 

Anyway, what FUN favors they would make not only for a Halloween event of course, but any kind of party, shower, or celebration – don't you think?!? 

To use this die, you'll also need the Big Shot, 1 regular size cutting pad, a piece of cardstock for a shim, and the Premium Crease Pad.  Order your Candy Wrapper Die (page 10 of the Holiday Mini) in plenty of time to enjoy it all the way through the upcoming holiday season!

House warming card

Sep 19, 2010

Well I'm a little gun-shy typing this post today.  Typepad (the service I use for this blog) is going through some kind of "upgrade", and in the cyber world, that's not generally a happy thing.  And a whole bunch of bloggers are spitting nails these days trying to get their posts published the way they want them to appear.  So I'm sure that's why my post of earlier this past week vanished into thin air (according to comments on Typepad's own blog, it appears to be happening to others, too), and I'm sure the fact that it took me half a day to add just one sentence to my demonstrator benefits page the other day had something to do with their "new and improved" editor, too!  Geesh!

So here goes another attempt at posting….. and if things end up looking totally goofy, please understand why.  Sometimes what we type doesn't end up being what actually publishes….. and oftentimes we don't have control over where the pictures ultimately end up.

P9190002 Today I want to share a card I made for some friends' house warming.  The front features our oh-so-popular "Two-step Owl" punch, along with the Scallop Edge Border, and Heart-to-Heart punches.  The colors are Very Vanilla, Crumb Cake (eyes), Pear Pizzaz, Early Espresso, and either Tangerine Tango or Pumpkin Pie (I confess I forgot).  Notice where the knot ended up?  It was a little tricky finding room to tie and place that knot over there and still be able to center the top vanilla layer, so I had an inspiration to take a bite out of the Very Vanilla layer with the end of the Modern Label punch!  (Oh yeah, I guess that means I used THAT punch, too.)

The Pear Pizzazz Designer paper comes from the current hostess gift set (Level 1), and the tangerine/pumpkin were scraps I had lying around from a while back.

Now, this two-step owl punch is adorable, but a lot of people are having trouble dealing with those itty-bitty, teeny-tiny circles that punch out for the eyes.  And I agree it is IMPOSSIBLE to handle them with your fingers.  But here's what I do:  I add a tiny little spot of Two-Way Glue Pen to the dot and then pick it up (glue side up) by touching the sharp pointy tip of the Paper Snips to it.  Then I roll the scissors over (so glue side is pointed down), and then I can just about hit the exact landing spot where I want to place that pesky dot!  And truth be told, I used the exact same technique to place those small hearts, too.  Probably didn't HAVE to, but it sure made it a lot easier!

Now, for the inside of this card I used "My Digital Studio" to create something totally custom….. and I had a lot of fun with this, too!  Check it out – although because it's on a white background you can't really tell where the edges would be.  So just imagine this printed on a 5-1/4" x 4" piece of Whisper White cardstock…… : Love-Nest-House-Warming

 Remember you can usually click on a picture to see it larger, if you want.  (Well, operative word being "usually"; don't know WHAT might happen these days, lol!)

So whadaya think?!?  Leave me a comment if you feel inspired!  (And if Typepad will let you!)

Now you see it, now you don’t!

Sep 15, 2010

Well, THAT's a fine howdy-do!  I just logged on to my blog this morning to discover that the post I'd written last Saturday morning and scheduled to show up on Monday morning had apparently completely disappeared from the cyber world!  So I guess I'll have to rewrite that one…….. bummer! 

Don't have time right now, though – but at least I figured I'd check in and say "hi".  I'm in the middle of a couple of fun projects I'm working up for my downlines, and really need to focus on getting those "out the door", so to speak.  (Just another perk of being a Stampin' Up!® demonstrator in my group; wanna join us?!?)  But just had to share that I really DID write a post (showcasing a card from the prior weekend's Stamp-a-Stack) that was *supposed* to have gone live Monday morning.  Just have no idea where it is right NOW, lol!

What do you do with all those retired papers?

Sep 10, 2010

P9100002 So what do you do with all your retired printed paper?  Well, here's an idea!  Grab your punches and get to work!

This was a card I designed for my Stamp-a-Stacks last weekend, and I had a blast doing it!  You see, I have this enormous supply of retired Stampin' Up!® Designer Series Paper from years and years-worth of collecting…… and the really cool thing is that because the colors stay fairly standard because of our own color collections, eventually you accumulate enough designs to do a mix-and-match collage type project like this! 

So I dug and dug and dug sheet-by-sheet in my special "retired papers" box – for about an hour – and came up with these colors that I thought went pretty well together….. and just tossed 'em out there for use.

I have admired the stamp set "Season of Friendship" for the entire time it's been in our line, but until recently have never broken down and bought it because I figured it would retire the moment I did.  But since it made it for at least this entire next year into the new Idea Book & Catalog I figured I'd take the chance, and I debuted my new tree stamp last weekend with this card.

Now, some of my ladies are very literal when they copy an example I've set up for these make & take events, and try to place and space every little detail exactly as I lay it out. Most of the time that works just fine, but every so often that's a little too restrictive for a design that's all about "random".  And THIS time it would have completely eliminated the pure joy of just arbitrarily punching circles and seeing what you end up with.  So while I was a bit concerned about the potential for that happening with *this* card, I needn't have worried.  In fact I was downright pleased to see that every single stamper got into the spirit of the design and just punched and arranged to her heart's content!  Some cards ended up similar to mine, and others had the tree's stamped branches completely covered with "leaves"……. but EVERY card ended up looking great regardless!  Very cool!  Can't wait to try something like this again!