Case The Creator Card – Collar Card May ’22
Hello Stamping Friends,
It’s time to look at May’s Case The Creator (CTC) card with instructions and a video from Chris Slogar of buckeyeinklings.com. There is also a printable pdf file if you like to have a hard copy of the recipes. 
Case The Creator #4 printable pdf file
My card uses the Designer Series Paper (DSP) Hues of Happiness. The yellow on the collar is actually the same paper as the blue on the second layer, so cutting one strip of the 12″ DSP at 4 1/4″ gave me enough to have two lengths of 5 1/2″ and it was one of those ‘serendipity moments’ when I looked at the blue part of the DSP and decided it would be a nice layer. (That layer is not included in the CTC instructions.) Plus, the leftover 1″ X 4 1/4″ was perfect to use on the inside. Nothing wasted on that 4 1/4″ strip!
To decorate I stamped the largest flower from the Happiness Abounds stamp set in Daffodil Delight ink as a second generation (stamp off once) and then stamped over the flower with a greeting from Celebrating You in Night of Navy Ink. I used a Lt Crushed Curry Stampin’ Blend to color the edges of the flower petals that weren’t covered by the greeting. I cut out the flower with the Blossoming Happiness Die and then used the Dk Night of Navy Stampin’ Blend to color the edge of the flower. I made a bow and a left edge embellishment strip using the Misty Moonlight 1/8″ ribbon from the Cotton Ribbon Combo Pack in the mini catalog after coloring the ribbon with the Dk Night of Navy Stampin’ Blend. The leaves are cut from the Blossoming Happiness Dies on a scrap of Granny Apple Green. The inside greetings are from the Limited Edition stamp set.
Wow! Sometimes you just need beautiful DSP to do half the work!
So true, Sal.
Let’s look at the cards prepared by the other creative stampers.
Jo Brooks’ card is beautiful with the contrasting colors she chose, and she added another DSP layer in the inside with an oval for the greeting! What a great way to pull everything together inside and out!
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Sharon Fincham made 4 CTC cards using different DSP’s or different greetings and even a different orientation!
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Ann Hausmann decorated the card by putting a greeting in the collar fold!
Lucille Kearin cut off the edges of the collar to make a unique CTC card:
Joy Meadows embossed the layer under the collar in her card!
Thank you all for participating! What fun to start with a simple set of instructions and then to see what each stamper uses to create a special and unique card.
Yes, I added a Case The Creator category or they can click on the Recipe Box tab and find the card I made and then by clicking on the thumbnail of the card image you will automatically be at the blog post for that card.
Thank you for spending some of your day with me as I bring you a “pinch of creativity to spice up your crafting world!”
SAL, Sharing A Love
Karen
Paradise Palms for May Swaps, Sweet Songbirds Catalog Launch
Hello Stamping Friends,
Let’s take a moment to remember those who gave their lives for their country!
Jo Brooks sent a swap card that is so perfect for the day:
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The little red star is attached to the left and fits inside the blue star creating an awesome hinge. Opening up the stars, Jo has inserted ‘A Soldier’s Poem’:
May we honor their sacrifice by protecting our freedoms as best we can!
Jo’s card uses many Stampin’ Up! Dies– Celebrate You, Basic Borders, Cross of Hope, Scalloped Contours, and Stitched Stars. What a great card for Memorial Day! Thank you, Jo!
I have so much to share I hardly know where to start. Grab a cuppa and settle in for some wonderful inspiration from my group of swappers and the projects at the catalog launch.
You had better hurry! You have so much to share.
Catalog Launch Fun
Stampin’ Up!’s new annual catalog made its debut May 3rd and it was so hard to decide what to showcase. I love birds and wasn’t sure about the Sweet Songbirds stamp set until I saw a card made by Sue Vine of Miss Pinks Craft Spot with the bird in the air so I went with that idea and voila:
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There are two different sets of eyes- open or closed- and two different feet -standing or walking- and a punch to punch out our little songbird! Laura Mellinger of laurasworksofgheart.blogspot.com designed the little nest which was perfect for a party favor!
I used the Tea Boutique Cards and Envelopes with strips of the new Tahitian Tide, Parakeet Party and Sweet Sorbet card stock adhered to the white side which I made the front. The clouds are from the Give It A Whirl Dies! The clouds have stitched edges for a fun look and there are hearts and circles and rectangles, a must for your collection, even if you never make a whirly card like I did here.
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. All the attendees got to see the new In Colors up close and personal as they made their color chart:
. Sweet Songbird In Flight Recipe
–Sweet Songbirds stamp set, Songbird Builder Punch
-Base, Tea Boutique Cards and Envelopes
-Basic White, 2 3/4″ X 4″; stamp the songbird and then punch out. Stamp and punch an extra belly to make the larger wing. Helpful Hint: Punch the songbird out of scrap to make a template for positioning the stamps on the Stamparatus. Save your template with the stamp set.
-Side Strips X2, 5 1/2″ X 3/8″ in one color for the songbird and one color to match your choice of card
-Basic White scraps, various sizes to die cut clouds with the Whirly Dies
-Baker’s Twine, 12″ and 3 Opal Round embellishments (There is Baker’s Twine to match the In Colors)
-Inks, Memento Black, Soft Suede, Old Olive, Tahitian Tide, Crushed Curry, Sweet Sorbet (Poppy Parade)
Sweet Songbird Favors
-Nest box, Soft Suede, 3X3, score at 1″ and 2″ on both sides, cut from one score line to the other on opposite sides 
-Nest, Soft Suede, 2 1/2 X 3, stamp two nests and fussy cut
-Bird, Tahitian Tide 2 X 2 1/4, punch – no stamping, Basic White scrap for belly, Daffodil Delight scrap for beak
-Sign, Basic White, 2 X 2, stamp the post full strength and then the rectangle after stamping off (2nd generation) so the greeting stamps nicely over top, stamp the notes in memento black and fussy cut
May Swaps
I chose the Paradise Palms stamp set and Palm Dies on a background of New Horizons Designer Series Paper (retiring June 30) with a Pale Papaya Base and Basic Black accents. The greeting and birds are from the retired Beautiful Moments stamp set. The coconuts are from the Pebbles Enamel Shapes . I added the setting sun and sponged a bit of extra colors in the sky.
I made a vertical book fold with the same palm tree design and a different piece from the same DSP for the inside of the card that looks like a beach with sea foam just coming in!
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Horizontal Paradise Palms Recipe
- Base, Pale Papaya, 8 1/2 X 5 1/2, score at 4 1/4
- Layer, Basic Black, 5 3/8 X 3 3/8; 1/16 reveal top and sides
- Top Layer, New Horizons DSP, 5 1/4 X 3 1/4
- Designer Strip, Basic Black, 3/4 X 5 1/2, die cut with Palms Die and center 1/8″ up from bottom and 1/8″ from black layer
- Palm Tree, Basic Black, 2 5/8 X 3 3/8, die cut with Palms Dies
- Greeting and birds, Memento Black Ink; stamp set – Collect Beautiful Moments
- Sun, use a sponge dauber to make a circle in Crushed Curry with a little extra sponged in the sky
- Embellish with Pebbles Enamel Shapes for coconuts and 3 In Color gems on DSP
- Inside Layer, Basic Black, 2 5/8 X 5 3/8
- Inside Top, New Horizons DSP, 2 1/2 X 5 1/4
- Inside Greeting, Memento Black, Paradise Palms Stamp set
Vertical Book Fold Paradise Palms Recipe
- Base, Pale Papaya, 8 1/2 X 5 1/2, score at 4 1/4; Turn 180 degrees and score at 3 3/8″ and 3 3/8 + 1/16, (7/16) for a decorative extra score line
- Layer (X2), Basic Black, 3 1/8 X 5 1/2, this will be flush with top and bottom with 1/16 reveal right and left
- DSP Top Layer (X2), New Horizons, 3 X 5 1/2; Hint: with 3″ in width you can make two from a 6 X 6 which is the goal if you are making multiples. Obviously, a different DSP used for inside.
- Designer Strip, Basic Black, 3/4 X 5 1/2, die cut with Palms Die and center 3/16″ from side and 3/16″ from black layer
- Palm Tree, Basic Black, 2 5/8 X 3 3/8, die cut with Palms Dies
- Grass, Basic Black, 3 1/2 X 1
- Greeting and birds, Memento Black Ink, Stamp set – Collect Beautiful Moments
- Sun, use a sponge dauber to make a circle in Crushed Curry with a little extra sponged in the sky
- Embellish with Pebbles Enamel Shapes for coconuts
- Inside Greeting, Memento Black, Paradise Palms Stamp set
Do you crafters really measure to the 1/16 of an inch?
Well, Sal, we often just eyeball the placement but that doesn’t make for very good instructions.
Let’s look at the swaps from the rest of the group. We saw Jo Brooks’ swap up top so now let’s look at Sharon’s swap using a tea cup very similar to our new tea cup in the Tea Boutique Suite. She uses three layers for the butterfly- a Fresh Freesia base, a Blushing Bride die cut and then tops her butterfly with a vellum die cut and a unique oval gem.
Heather used the Flowering Fields DSP (retiring June 30) and a greeting from the Flowering Tulips stamp set in beautifully layered circles on a gold foil circle. The base is Poppy Parade and she used a corner rounder punch on opposing sides of the DSP for a unique look.
Ann’s swap used embossed strips of the new In Colors on a Crumb Cake base and the greeting from Biggest Wish stamped in Parakeet Party with the ‘happy’ stamped over in Starry Sky. The ribbon is the 1/8″ Metallic Woven ribbon in Orchid Oasis
Lucille Kearin used the DSP with butterflies (retired) and a fun ‘hi’ Die. She embellished with white ribbon and Paper Studio Flowers.
Joy’s card uses the new Nature’s Prints stamp set and Natural Prints Dies. She used the Gray Granite side of the Sun Prints DSP, the Layering Circles Dies, a doily and beautiful gems. You would love the sparkly Wink of Stella she used on the branch but the camera didn’t capture the sparkle. Her gems really sparkled!
You must see the other card she made using the Nature’s Prints Dies! I love the shape of the greeting and had to go look up the dies since I hadn’t even noticed that die. She used the new Fern 3D embossing folder on a base of Starry Sky and then sponged the top lightly with white craft stampin’ ink.
Lori Moore made a slimline card on a white base with Design A Daydream DSP for her first layer and then a layer of embossed Basic White, a layer of Blackberry Bliss with the top layer of Basic White stamped with the Art Gallery stamp set flower in Berry Burst and Rich Razzleberry. The leaves and ribbon are Soft Succulent. The greeting is from the Floral Gallery Dies.
Wow, you will have lots of samples to show at your next party!
So true! Thank you everyone for participating in our monthly swaps!
Hopefully, I will have some cards from the May Paper Pumpkin to show you soon.
Now, now, Sal, be kind! Though you make a good point and I think I even missed the April swaps.
Thank you for spending some time with me!
SAL, Sharing A Lot of inspiration
Karen
Triangle Corner Pop Up Card for Case The Creator (CTC) #3
Hello Stamping Friends,
Case The Creator Card Challenge
This month we cased Dawn Griffith’s Triangle Corner Pop Up Easel Card!
Yes, Dawn calls it a “Fancy, Schmancy Corner Fun Fold”! Her video is in the instructions.
Case The Creator #3 printable pdf file
I ordered the tiny magnets from Amazon:
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The bicycle is hidden when you open up the easel so be careful with your design. I had a lot of fun with the bicycle! I used the long, tiny tulip die to create a basket of tulips! I will write my greeting under the ‘thank you’ since I went against protocol and made the bottom left another flower display instead of the place to write a note.
Heather made a fabulous graduation card with beautiful gold embossed paper and black! I love the diploma for the easel stand up!
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Joy’s beautiful card uses the ‘Expressions In Ink’ designer series paper. We only have until May 2nd to get discontinuing items, like this DSP, from the annual catalog!
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Sharon’s uses the Tea Time stamp set and Tea Together dies- look at the little heart she put on the lid!
Sheri used the ‘Flowering Fields’ DSP and the ‘Simply Succulents’ stamp set for greetings:
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Ann used the ‘You’re A Peach’ DSP and the ’Sweet As A Peach Bundle’. Those peaches even look fuzzy! The amazing “Dist ink tive” stamps! These are in the Annual catalog as well so order before May 2.
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Jo’s little rabbit made us all smile, and eggs from the Arrange A Wreath set and Wreath Builder Dies were perfect with the paper.
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They followed instructions and had a large place for a message.
Indeed! Isn’t it fun to see all the different creations from one set of instructions?!
SAL, Seeing April Leave
Karen
Click on little Sal in the computer to shop.
Simple Side Step Card
Hello Stamping Friends,
Let’s look at a Simple Side Step Card. I saw this design on Lori Pinto’s Lollipop Paper & Ink blog and used it for my Case The Creator #2 Challenge with my stamping group. It is so cool to see all the different cards from one set of instructions!
Case The Creator #2 printable pdf file
And here is the file if you don’t want to print it out:
I used the SAB Daffodil Afternoon designer series paper for my background and the Daffodil Dies for my card:
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Joy Meadows used the Pierced Blooms Dies for her beautiful card:
Ann Hausmann used the Sale A Bration Friendly Hello set with the Friendly Hello Designer Series Paper:
. Heather Guitreau used the Art In Bloom bundle with its Bloom Hybrid Embossing folder and dies:
They are all beautiful and so fun to see the variety! Thank you for participating!
I made a thank you card using this same style. I used the Happy Hedgehogs stamp set and the retired Love You Lots stamp set and the SAB Thoughtful Blooms set. I used the New Horizons DSP and then sponged the front to match the DSP after masking the stamped images. The hedgehog is the little one in the set and I used the reverse image technique to face him toward the right. Just use a silicone pad and your stamparatus, stamp the image several times in Memento on the silicon pad and then carefully lay your paper on top and burnish to get a nice reverse image.
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Thank you for sharing some of your precious time with me!
SAL, Spring At Last
CTC #1 Pocket Card
Good morning, Stamping Friends,
Here is a walk down memory lane for a swiper St. Patrick’s Day card. When you pull the card side to side the pot of gold pops up:
You can click on the image to go to the post for detailed pictured instructions! We can change the images to a current product while maintaining rainbows, shamrocks and a pot of gold!
Now there’s a thought! And we could add a pepper shaker to be your friend!
Ann Hausmann cased Kirsteen Gill and made the cutest St. Patrick’s Day favor:
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Thank you, Ann!
February Case The Creator #1 printable pdf file (click on the blue)
Lynn Dunn of Stamptastic Designs is our creator! Thank you, Lynn.
I made a Valentines Day card since I had all those supplies sitting at my work table, and then I used the same design for February thank you cards. Another sincere thank you to all those who ordered in February! Oops…. That’s why I have you!
I used the ‘Always In My Heart’ stamp set for Be My Valentine on a banner die cut from the Floral Heart Dies. The paper is the ‘Sweet Talk’ Designer Series Paper in the mini catalog. I fussy cut candies for the inside. The Happy Valentine’s Day fits so perfectly in the opening and is from the retired ‘Heartfelt’ stamp set. The ribbon is the Faux Linen Real Red ribbon from the mini catalog.
For the Thank You card and a card for Mom I made these:
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The paper is from the ‘Flowering Fields’ designer series paper, also in the mini catalog and I used the ‘Jar of Flowers’ stamp set to make a bouquet the perfect size for the pocket opening. I had a stack of products by the time I finished:
- Delivering Cheer stamp set – shadow under the jar
- Positve Thoughts stamp set – Hugs, Prayers, Love
- Forever Blossoms stamp set – All of me loves all of you
- Prized Peony stamp set – Love & thanks to a dear friend
- Jar of Flowers stamp set – Tulips & stems, jar stamped on a window sheet with stazon ink
- Detailed Bands Dies – cut once in Basic White and once in Fresh Freesia
- Stampin’ Blends – Lt Fresh Freesia, Dk & Lt Soft Succulent, Dk Rich Razzleberry, Lt Highland Heather, Pineapple Punch
To the above CTC instructions I added a Gorgeous Grape belly band permanently attached – 1″ X 8 1/4″, score at 1/4″ and then gently fold to determine where it will wrap on the side, then score that fold.
For the bow on the jar I used a 1/8″ X 4″ strip of Gorgeous Grape and folded in a 45 degree fold to which I added a second 1/8″ X 1 1/2″ strip tucked in at the fold.
I also added a 3 X 4 Basic White piece to go on back of the insert for writing a message, a doily and three little brass butterflies.
. I love the little fussy cut flower laying on the ground in the insert! Nice touch.
Thank you, Sal! Let’s look at the cards from those who participated and sent me pictures.
Joy used the cut off for the pocket to make a second card and the Layering Ovals punch for two different greetings. She’s using products from the Art Gallery suite.
Sharon did three different cards – the pocket card and then used the pieces for two others. She used the ‘Expressions In Ink’ designer series paper and a paper bow from the ‘Pierced Blooms Dies’.
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Ann used the hostess ‘Pattern Party’ designer series paper and the ‘Pierced Blooms Dies’. I love the stripes that peek out from the back:
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Heather used the Poppy set in Pool Party for a lovely card:
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. Thank you, dear stampers, for participating and helping others see the variety of creations from one fun fold pocket card! We have a large flower in the opening, a whole bouquet in the opening, a lovely paper bow or even a heart in the opening!
SAL, Spring At Last
Karen
Click on Sal in the computer to go to my store:’
Ninja Turtle Birthday Cards & Gift Card Holder
Hello Stamping Friends,
Would you like to look at December’s Mystery card?
What happened to January?
Ahh, January! Snowstorms caused us to cancel club twice but finally we had club on the last day of January. Obviously no days left for a Zoom meeting with a mystery card.
January 4th was my daughter Amber’s birthday and the 9th was Emmitt’s 4th birthday so we celebrated with a Ninja Turtle party! Paul had to be both grandpa and dad since dad was in Seattle.
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Of course, he had to have a Ninja turtle card:
The little dog looks just like Ruger don’t you think?! I used the ‘Back on Your Feet’ stamp set and the ‘Ready For Christmas’ stamp set and ‘Christmas Staircase’ dies. I cut the curves with the ‘Polar Bear Dies’ and punched out a balloon. The number ‘4’ was die cut with the ‘Playful Alphabet’ die. I hand drew the Ninja mask!
Jaxson’s birthday was just two weeks earlier so he received a Ninja in red – I think that is Michaelangelo and the blue is Donatello.
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Then January 7th our fifth grandbaby decided to come early and was born to Stacia and Jonathan. Emma became a big sister! Josephine Jasmine Whitehead entered the world weighing 5 lbs 13 oz. She was named after Paul’s mom! She was born one day before her daddy’s birthday on the 8th! Very special in so many ways!
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And if that wasn’t enough we had sold the motorhome after Christmas and in January Paul found a new truck and camper to make our travels better! It is an Arctic Fox 811. They sure make them better than the two cab over campers we owned in the past and it is a four season so we can take it to Steamboat to see the family!
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Wow, that was quite the month! Now can we see the mystery card?
Mystery Card Challenge #18 printable pdf file- click on the blue
I needed several cards so I changed the front word die cuts to suit the situation:
I used a Crumb Cake base with a layer of Evening Evergreen, the gorgeous Ever Eden DSP-Designer Series Paper, another layer of Evening Evergreen with a Soft Succulent layer and then the Basic White for the art work. The middle card has an extra layer of the Ever Eden cotton paper that is very like tissue and made a nice background with a bit of a different texture. The gold is from our laser cut gold DSP and layered on top of stamped greenery and cut out greenery from the Sparkle of the Season bundle. Happy New Year and Happy Day are from the Word Wishes dies. Happy Birthday is the retired Birthday die.
The front is a flap that opens and has a pocket for a gift card. The greeting is from the ‘Celebrating You’ set in the mini catalog.
Jo Brooks participated and made a birthday card with lots of cool balloons!!
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Joy Meadows also made a birthday card with a fun look of flowers and no need for a separate pocket!
. Sharon Fincham made the card going vertically.
. Don’t you just love those little bugs!! Thank you ladies for participating!
SAL, Share A Love
Gingerbread House Dutch Fold Card Contest
Hello Stamping Friends,
November’s stamping schedule was way wacko since Paul tested positive for COVID and we had to isolate for 14 days. (He is fine and said he has had worse colds than this.) Our regular club meeting was moved to the day we would have had the Zoom meeting (4th Tuesday) with a Mystery Card Challenge. So I created a new challenge – make a Gingerbread House using a Dutch Fold and bring it to club. We will vote and the top Gingerbread House will receive a prize!
There are a lot of Dutch Fold Cards on social media but the one that inspired me was Anna Helman’s Hen House:
. She has all the instructions on Youtube which I posted here and we need only to change it to a gingerbread house. In the video the basics of the house structure runs from about the 2 minute mark to the 10 minute mark. From there your creative genius kicks in to do a gingerbread house.
Basics for a house-
- 11 x 5 3/4″ Card Base, Scored Vertically at 1 1/2″ and 3″ then turn and Score Horizontally at 2 3/4″ and 8 1/4″ (this gives you 2 3/4″ on each side). The vertical scores are the roof and lay horizontally on the house.
- Cut off the top section on both sides cutting along the 3″ vertical score line to the 2 3/4 ” horizontal score line and then cut to the top
- Burnish the folds; Bottom should have two folds like doors that meet in the middle and the top folds down from the 1 1/2 score line to the 3″ score line- this is the roof
- Make the gables on your roof by making a pencil mark 1 1/2″ from the right and 1 1/2″ from the left on the folded roof and cutting through both layers in a diagonal from 1 1/2″ mark on each side to the 2 3/4″ score line (the top of your door).
- Think Gingerbread House and have fun!
I pulled out my left overs from last year’s Paper Pumpkin for a front entryway to my house and die cut little windows with the Tailored Tag hole reinforcers. The icing on the roof and below the windows is from the Gingerbread Dies and the icing on the walls and the snow on the ground are from the Polar Bears Dies. The greeting, the tag, the little candies and the stamped entryway are all from the Paper Pumpkin. I had trouble keeping the front shut so I dug up one of my little reindeer paper clips from Stampin’ Up! retired products. A square of gold glimmer paper behind the star and two jewel doorknobs complete the front.
When you open up the roof you can see the extra chimneys that show on the front:
For the inside I used a greeting from the retired Wrapped In Warmth stamp set and die cut it out with a Hippo die. The greeting was mounted on two more of the little house pieces from Paper Pumpkin.
. Let’s look at the contestants since yours obviously can’t be entered.
It would be weird to win your own prize. Sort of defeats the purpose of a contest.
The winner of the prize was Jo Brooks:
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The details, the wreath, the designer series paper and the glitter paper – oh my! Just beautiful!
A box of gingerbread cookies! Fitting don’t you think?!
Ann Hausmann made a gnome house:
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Those little gnomes are so cute! And remember they had to figure out all the layers themselves. They just had directions for the base.
Well, they did have that and Sharon even did the pop ups on the inside of her house like the video showed:
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She put an amazing amount of work into the inside. With most of her cards, the inside is as creative as the outside!
Lori went with a different roof line on an Early Espresso base, oodles of candies and puff paint!
Love those heart windows!
Thank you, friends for participating in a fun challenge.
I would love to see what you make as a gingerbread dutch fold card! Send pictures!
Thanks for stopping by to see some fun cards! Come back again soon.
SAL, Sparing A Little time to have some fun
Karen
Gather Together with Nuts About Squirrels
Hello Stamping Friends,
This card is a case of one made by Lezards de Cilou. Hers was made as a much larger card but the idea was great so I made a normal A2 size card,.
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Recipe:
Woodtone Designer Series Paper (DSP) is either ‘In Good Taste’ or ‘Beauty Of The Earth’ (Both are in the Annual Catty) or just use Early Espresso and Emboss with the Bark 3D embossing folder.
Stamp Sets: Nuts About Squirrels and Pretty Pumpkins
Inks: Soft Suede- squirrel outlines; Cinnamon Cider for stamping the color of the squirrels; Pumpkin Pie for greetings and one inside little leaf; Cajun Craze for a leaf; Crushed Curry for a leaf; Early Espresso for branches and veins on the leaves.
Blender Pens: Ivory for shading on the squirrels; Bronze for the top of the acorn; Lt Cajun Craze for bottom of acorn.
Marker: Pumpkin Pie to add dots to greetings
Dies: Layering Diorama Dies, Tailored Tag Dies
Embossing Folder: Cracked Paint
- Base: Bumble Bee, 4 1/4 X 11, scored at 5 1/2.
- Back Piece for a background: Woodtone DSP, 2 1/4 X 3 5/8, this is to be a background for your cutouts. Glue to base.
- Middle layer: Woodtone DSP, 3 5/8 X 4 5/8, die cut with smallest Layering Diorama Die, emboss with the Crackled Paint embossing folder and then distress and sponge the edges with Early Espresso- Turn this layer upside down so your openings are different.
- Very Top Layer: Woodtone Designer Series Paper; 3 7/8 X 4 7/8. Cut with the second from smallest Layering Diorama Die centering about 1 1/2″ top and bottom. Emboss with the Crackled Paint Embossing Folder. Sponge the cut out to add shadows and glue to the back piece you glued on the base.
- Tree Branches at top: DSP from Beauty Of The Earth, 1 3/4 X 4, fussy cut the edges
- Inside Layer: Basic White, 3 7/8 X 4 7/8, Stamp greeting, then the little leaves in bottom corner. The stamp set has a two time stamping for the leaves- the leaves are stamped and then the veins are stamped over top, I used Pumpkin Pie ink, Cajun Craze Ink and Crushed Curry Ink and then stamped the veins in Early Espresso.
- Squirrel, acorns and tree branch – Basic White, 3 3/4 X 5
- Stamp the squirrel outline in Soft Suede twice with the Stamparatus
- Stamp the two step coloring of the squirrels with Cinnamon Cider stamped off once, reinked and stamped off a second time
- Color in the squirrel with Ivory Stampin’ Blends
- Stamp two additional acorns and color with Bronze on the top and Lt. Cajun Craze on the bottom
- Stamp the tree branch with Early Espresso and fussy cut
- Greeting: Basic White, 1 1/2 X 3, Mask half the greeting with sticky note, ink, remove mask and then stamp. The inside gets the other half of the greeting doing the same thing. Then add three little dots with the Pumpkin Pie Marker. Cut the front with the smallest Tailored Tag Die. Hide the circle under the squirrel’s head.
After making a couple I determined the best way to add the layers was dimensionals around the opening of the middle layer and gluing the sides with glue runner or Tombow. Then the top is popped up with adhesive strips.
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. Using the Layering Diorama Dies is not as complicated as it looks and there are so many creative applications online. The Nuts About Squirrels carries over to next year so that is good news for you demonstrators wanting to use it for your classes.
. That was cool! I bet the others sent you great swap cards as well!
They did and we should take a look so we have a scrapbook of ideas for the future!
Cindy’s card is a wonderful Thanksgiving greeting that you must see even though it is not a swap. Look at the many lovely Designer Series Papers she used and the Pretty Pumpkin stamp, linen thread and gold gems! The pumpkin is glossy and beautiful in real life. I think she used the baby wipe technique for the colors and then embossed with clear embossing powder. It sparkles!
Ann’s beautiful card uses the Beauty of the Earth Designer Series Paper, Scalloped Contour Dies and Beautiful Trees dies.
Lori’s helping me with Christmas cards with her swap using the Playful Penguin Designer Series Paper and Misty Moonlight card stock, Layering Diorama Dies, Curvy Christmas sentiment, Christmas Whimsy card kit for star stamp, and fussy cut little creatures from the Designer Series Paper. So cute!!
Jo used the Days To Remember stamp set with the Brushwork Alphabet and lovely Designer Series Paper and sequins:
Joy used a Pale Papaya card base with a layer of Blackberry bliss (love that combo) and then weaved strips of the Beauty of the Earth Designer Series Paper on a Pale Papaya layer embossed with the Tasteful Textile embossing folder. She used the Pretty Pumpkins Stamp set with the bundled Detailed Pumpkins dies for the pumpkins and the greeting is from the same set.
. Sharon’s card uses fun table name markers from her stash to make a cute Thanksgiving card:
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Lucille’s card is lovely with lots of sparkle and stitched leaves on a Bumble Bee base with an Old Olive layer. The ‘hugs’ is die cut and the oval is a stitched oval.
‘A pinch of creativity to spice up your crafting life!’
SAL, Sending A Lot of cards to inspire you
Karen. (Click on little Sal to go to the online store)
Pencil Box & Sympathy Cards/Eden Garden
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Hello Stamping Friends,
The gold leaves are foil and just beautiful! I would like a whole pack of just that sheet! The sympathy greeting on Susie’s card is from the ‘Peaceful Moments’ stamp set.
So if you haven’t been making cards with the new set, what have you been doing?
Well, I haven’t been slacking, Sal (Slave driver At Large). October is pastor appreciation month and we have three main pastoral staff at our church so I purchased a nice pen and refill for each of them and then created a Pencil Box. Check it out:
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Here is the recipe for future pencil boxes to decorate with whatever you have in your stash:
Pencil Box Recipe
I started by measuring the pen and refill I was putting in the pouch. This takes a 12 X 12 cardstock.
- Base: 10 3/4 X 9 1/4; Score at 4, 4 1/2, 8 1/2, 9, 10 1/4
Fold and burnish all your score lines.
Place Tear & Tape on the 1/2″ flap at the right, fold over and corner round the edges.
I used the Crop A Dial to add an eyelet to the flap on two of the pencil pouches, the pink one I just tied with ribbon.
Angle your little side tabs when you cut them for ease and then glue them to the inside.
- First Layer (2): 3 3/4 X 8
- Second Layer (2): 3 1/2 X 7 3/4
- Envelope Flap: Gold Foil, 8 X 1 1/8 corner rounded
- Envelope Flap: DSP, 7 3/4 X 7/8 corner rounded
From there, I found the greetings I wanted and then let the creative juices flow.
“You make the ordinary extraordinary” – Simply Succulents
“You’re absolutely amazing” – Color & Contour
“Thank you”- Hand Drawn Blooms
“You Are So Special” – Tasteful Touches
Unfortunately, I also needed several sympathy/friend cards. Mary Ann Cowan used Soft Sea Foam on one she had made and it looked soft and comforting. The Hippo Dies gave me the layers and the Forever Fern Stamp Set and Forever Flourishing dies were used for the greenery. The Positive Thoughts stamp set has the ‘Hugs, Prayers, Love” greeting and the set also has the little flourish you see here under the ‘With Sympathy’ greeting from Lasting Lily(retired). The friend card uses the same little flourish and greetings from Welcoming Window (My Sweet Friend) and Seascape (I’m here for you …always).
- Base: Soft Seafoam, 8 1/2 X 5 1/2, scored at 4 1/4 and 2 1/8
- Layer: Soft Seafoam, 2 X 5 1/4, embossed with Tasteful Textile embossing folder
- Inside: Basic White, 4 X 5 1/4, emboss 2″ on the right hand side with Ornate Floral embossing Folder
- Vellum: 5 1/4 X 4
- Ink: Old Olive, stamped full strength on one leaf and stamped off on the second
- Dies: Forever Flourishing, Hippo Dies
- Stamp Sets: Positive Thoughts, Lasting Lily, Welcoming Window, Seascape
The greeting on the next one is from the Kindness and Compassion stamp set. Very Versailles was used for the vine and the words. The card stock used is Pale Papaya and Soft Succulent. It is so much prettier in real life. The die used is Detailed Bands. The sympathy greeting and rose are from the Painted Glass retired set.
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I need a scrapbook to look back on when I am designing cards and even if you are new to stamping, the layout can inspire you. I go to the blog Recipe Box when I need the measurements for a certain fold. Hopefully others find this useful as well. Please leave a comment if you have used the Recipe Box at any time. It is encouraging to know the time spent is valuable.
Did I sideline you with my ‘scrapbook’? I really want you to see Eden’s Garden so you don’t miss out on those beautiful papers!
Thank you, Brian, for a great view of the papers!!
SAL, Scrapbooking A Lot of ideas
Karen
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