New England Stamper

Bird Cards with Scraps

Oh where oh where have I been?  Not to London to see the Queen!  I've just been busy with other projects.

Here are some more cards make with scraps.  I'm making great inroads into my collection of card stock scraps.  These cards are made with the same colors as the card in the previous post - tempting turquoise, so saffron and old olive with kraft as the base. 

I love this new bird punch or the 'Extra Large 2-step Bird' to give its official name.  What I don't love is using brads for the eyes - I think they look creepy.  I prefer the small black pearl in the final card - what do you think?

Hope you are all having a splendid week!

More Scraps

I'm still working on that pile of scraps!  Today's Splitcoast CAS challenge is to use patterned or designer paper in a clean and simple card.  So out came my scraps again and my 1" circle punch.  The paper I chose is called Flock Together and is on page 162 the current Idea Book & Catalog. 

The finished card measures 4.75" x 4.75" and the vanilla panel measures 4.5" x 4.5".  To line up the circles, I found the center of the vanilla panel by drawing lines from corner to corner.  I placed the turquoise circle in the center and eyeballed it from there. 

This would be a great layout to using up both card stock and patterned paper scraps.  You could use a larger circle punch and make the overall card bigger - it has lots of possibilities.

I love these colors together, they look so fresh!  I'll be posting a few more cards using this combo in the coming days.

Thanks for visiting,

Supplies:

• Stamps: Tiny Tags
• Paper: Kraft, Vanilla, So Saffron & Old Olive c/stock, Flock Together designer paper
• Ink: Tempting Turquoise
• Accessories: Linen Thread, 1/4" Tempting Turquoise grosgrain ribbon
• Tools: Jewelry Tag & 1" circle punch, 1/16" hole punch

All supplies can be purchased here.

Stampin' Up! Helps Haiti

Help make a difference in the lives of those who continue to suffer from the effects of the devastating earthquake that struck Haiti on January 12.  From now until February 28, 2010, Stampin' Up!® will set aside $2 from the sale of every I {Heart} Hearts stamp set and donate it to the American Red Cross’ Haiti Relief and Development Fund. The Red Cross is already well-established in Haiti, and this money will be used to provide immediate relief and long-term support through supplies, technical assistance and other support to help those in need.

I {Heart} Hearts – clear-mount  (block D recommended)	118571	$18.95
I {Heart} Hearts – wood-mount	117010	$26.95

I was privileged to visited to Haiti 10 years ago when I worked for a non-profit that build homes, hospitals and orphanages there and in other Third World countries.  And it was a sobering experience, to say the very least!  I know that conditions haven't changed much in the last 10 years and the earthquake will only have made the devastating poverty there worse.  It's heart warming to see so many individuals, organizations and corporations donating time and money to help rebuild this country.  

In addition to the $2 Stampin' Up! donates, I will donate an additional $4 for every set sold.  You can purchase the set here and find out more information about how else SU is helping Haiti here.

This stamp set was featured at the SU Regional back in October and here's a photograph I took of the display board. 

Thanks for visiting and I hope you are able to help! 

Scrap-tastic

I did promise you some cards using up those scraps I just organized, so here you go:  two cards using heart punches.

The first uses up some retired card stock (Baja Breeze) and ribbon (Riding Hood Red) because that's one of my goals this year - start using my supplies and stop hoarding them.  I ran a piece of white c/stock through the Perfect Polka Dots embossing folder before punching out the hearts.  The adorable tag is from the new set Tiny Tags plus the Jewelry Tag punch - love them!

The second card uses the same large heart punch with one of the three hearts from the Heart to Heart punch layered on top.  Before punching them, I stamped the c/stock with the new mini background stamp - Fine Flourish.  The sentiment is from the new Well Scripted set in the Occasions Mini Catalog.

I hope you have a great weekend!

Supplies (card one):

• Stamps: Tiny Tags, Polka Dot b/ground
• Ink: Riding Hood Red & Baja Breeze
• Paper: Baja Breeze & Whisper White c/stock
• Accessories: Riding Hood Red Taffeta Ribbon, crochet thread
• Tools: Big Shot, Polka Dot embossing folder, large heart punch, Jewelry Tag punch

Supplies (card two):

• Stamps: Well Scripted, Fine Flourish
• Ink: Pretty in Pink, Rose Red, Regal Rose
• Paper: Whisper White, Pretty in Pink, Rose Red, Regal Rose c/stock
• Tools: Mat Pack, Large Heart punch, Heart to Heart punch, dimensionals

Storing Those Scraps

Happy New Year!  It's that time when we all want to get organized, right?  So, I figured I'd share with you how I organize my scraps of card stock.  As an SU demo, I always seem to have a lot of scraps left over after cutting projects for Stamp Club or a class, but I really can't stand to part with them. 

I love the idea of hanging files or neat boxes with lids etc, but I'm so visual that I need to SEE what I have. So, I use a Sterilite Show Off box that measures 14 1/4"L x 9 1/2"W x 6 7/8"H, which can be bought at Target or Walmart.  I've discarded the lid and have it open on my desk at all times.

Firstly, I sort the scraps into color groups and a neutrals pile (greys, black etc).  You'll notice that Chocolate Chip cardstock has its very own pile because it's the color I seem to use the most.  I include in my color scraps all the old Stampin' Up! In Colors, even if they are retired because I need to use them up.  But that's a personal choice for each demo.

Any pieces that are smaller than 1" x 1" are tossed, so is anything that is damaged.  Before filing I trim up the scraps to a square or rectangle shaped - no odd shapes or ripped edges.  And if a piece measures more than 5.5" long, I trim it to either 5.5" or 4.25".  This is because I'm a card maker and not a scrapbooker.  If I scrapbooked, then I'd probably leave longer strips in my scrap box for layouts.

The dividers were created from the card stock at the back of Designer Series Paper packages.  They measure 7.75" x 5.5".

You can see from the picture that I store full card fronts at the front of the scraps box.

I had a little fun decorating the outside of the box with the scraps from a retired Simply Scrappin' kit.

My scraps of vanilla and white card stock are stored in a separate little basket.

Over the next few weeks, I'll be sharing cards that use up all these scraps.  Come back again soon!

Christmas Scrapbook in a Box

Please don't think I'm ahead of the game and scrapbooking my Christmas pictures from this year - 2009.  Nope, the pictures I put into this Scrapbook in a Box are from 2007!  It's a start, right?  It was actually a special Christmas because it's the last one we spent in the UK and it was my niece's first Christmas - she was only a couple of months old.  I plan to put a little journaling in the empty squares.

The project is one we made in Stamp Club this month and we used the Christmas Jingle Simply Scrappin' kit.  These kits are perfect for this project - you can get 3 boxes from one kit if you use the patterned paper as the box lids.  

I've made several of these boxes before.  A summer box:

A July 4 box:

 

If you'd like to make one, here's a pdf file with the instructions: Download Scrapbook in a Box with Photos E

Hope you all had a great Christmas - thanks for stopping by!

Well Scripted

This is a very quick share before I fall asleep at my computer!  I got a chance to play with some new Occasions Mini Catalog goodies today and I'm in love with the new set Well Scripted!  I bought the clear mount version and it was really easy to use - no Stamp-a-ma-jig required to get it straight!

Both projects were made for today's CAS challenge on Splitcoast, which was to use curves in your project.  The first card uses the new Two-Step Bird punch - how fun is this punch?

The second is a tag for a wedding gift - it uses the new Vintage Vogue set as well as Well Scripted.  Both are simply gorgeous sets - I'll be using them a lot!

Thanks for visiting.  I hope you're not suffering from too much Holiday craziness!

Blogging Break

Apparently I've been on a bit of blogging break!  I'm taking care of some family matters and traveling overseas, so sadly this break will continue into December.

Here are a couple Top Note boxes that we made in stamp club this month.  They're hybrids of lots of similar projects I've seen posted online, so I'm not sure who to give credit to.  One great source of inspiration is Tammy at Dream, Create and Share.

Thanks to everyone who is still visiting and reading the archives.  I have posted a couple of projects on my other blog Art Ali, if you'd like to pay me a visit there.

Happy Holidays!

Butterfly Color Challenge

Today's Clean and Simple Challenge on Splitcoast is to create a white card with one other color.  For a November day in New England, it was unseasonably hot - 70 degrees!  So, I ditched the Fall and Winter colors in favor of a summery color - hot pink.

I used my Big Shot to dry emboss the background and die cut both butterflies.  The card came together so quickly and could easily be replicated with other color schemes, depending on what you have lying around on your craft table.

I have a busy week ahead preparing for a visit from my mum, but I'll try my best to get into my stamp room and make a few things to share.

Thanks for visiting!

Supplies:

• Stamps: Boho Backgrounds
• Paper: Vintage Cream, Melon Mambo, Raspberry Tart d/p
• Ink: Chocolate Chip
• Accessories: pin
• Tools: Big Shot, SU Butterflies die, Swiss dots embossing folder, modern label punch

Sweet & Simple Saturday

Happy weekend!  I've got another clean and simple card for you today.  I'm not sure about this one - I don't normally color on CAS cards, but change is good, I guess!

The main panel is watercolored with reinkers and an aquapainter.  And it's finished with a little sponging around the edges. 

I hope you have a fun-filled weekend!

Supplies:

• Stamps: Harvest Home
• Paper: Very Vanilla, Really Rust, Chocolate Chip, watercolor paper
• Ink: Stazon, various Earth Elements reinkers, Chocolate Chip (sponging)
• Accessories: Chocolate Chip 5/8" grosgrain ribbon, hemp
• Tools: Paper piercing tool, aquapainter

All supplies can be purchased here.