Friday, January 29, 2021

Sand & Sea Revisited

sand sea revisited 1

 I think you've probably figured out what my favourite stamp set and suite from the 2021 Jan/Jun Mini Catalogue is by now haven't you?  Yes, it's the Sand & Sea Suite and I couldn't resist one more kick at the sand pail, so to speak.

I admit that I was heavily influenced by some gorgeous creations by Narelle Farugia from last year's Artisan Design Team (aren't those artists inspiring?), but I took an admiring browse through her blog and then set out to make my own in the same fashion. Casing Narelle. I hope I didn't come too close to her designs, but it's so hard when you see something you like so much.

Instead of using that one big piece that works all together, I wanted to show you what you can do with the various individual elements of the Sand & Sea set:

sand sea revisited 2

  • I stamped a number of the elements of the Friends are Like Seashells stamp set on Basic White cardstock with Memento Tuxedo Black ink.
  • I used a variety of Stampin' Blends Combos to colour them in, as well as the Blending Brushes to add some colour. I included Bermuda Bay Blends, Pool Party Blends, Crumb Cake, Soft Suede and Petal Pink blends plus the Colour Lifter. With the Blending Brushes I used Coastal Cabana and Crumb Cake and some petal Pink.
  • I die cut most of the elements, although the shaded shells I had to cut roughly out the cardstock and then use that large composite die to die cut them. Even then, I had to trim away the bits of sea weed left on by that die.
  • I used the Lighthouse from the Sailing Home stamp set and the corresponding Smooth Sailing Dies to die cut the lighthouse and the large seaweed from a piece of Fine Art Floral DSP.
  • I distressed, sponged and used the sprinkle stamp from Friends are Like Seashells to add speckles to the background papers.
  • Braided Linen Trim frays and knots easily to make an interesting embellishment for each card, in a different way for each one.
sand sea revisited 3


sand sea revisited 4

I really enjoyed creating these and will be using them as samples for my Catalogue Launch this weekend.



Have you heard about the Hey Chick and Hey Birthday Chick Promotion? Well, Stampin' Up! is bringing back the stamp set, Hey Chick, to go along with the new Hey Birthday Chick and, in this new promotion, they will have dies to go with each set. And you, the customer will be able to purchase them starting Feb. 1! They are adorable and with the extra dies, you can create little barn yard scenes!


Check the possibilities out on Pinterest to see what you can do! Then let me know what you want!

sand sea Revisited 5

If you live in Canada, and don't have a Stampin' Up! demonstrator, I'd love to be yours. I can help you with ideas, get you catalogues and provide you with Stampin' Up products. You can leave a message in the comments or contact me using any of the methods listed in the right side bar at the top of the page. You can shop with me from anywhere in Canada by clicking on the SHOP NOW button in the top menu or clicking on any of products below from my Online Store.


Product List
Paper Snips
[103579]
$13.50

Wednesday, January 27, 2021

I Get Mail

 

i get mail 1

I recently celebrated my birthday, and I got lots of lovely Facebook messages, but what I appreciated as a stamper and card maker, were the hand stamped cards I received and I wanted to share them with you today. Not all are made with current Stampin' Up! products, but they are all beautiful and made with care, so I know you'll enjoy seeing them!

i get mail 2

From my upline, Desiree Spenst, I received this adorable card featuring the Bonanza Buddies Suite from last year's Jan/Jun Mini Catalogue. I love the bright colours and that cute koala!

i get mail 3

My hubby has several sources among my stamping friends when he needs a card for me and this time he went to my good customer and former downline, Kim Findlater, @wildroseandpearl on Instagram. This is a beautiful Gatefold card using the Magnolia Lane Suite.

i get mail 4

My very first downline member, Doreen Austgarden, really outdid herself with this gorgeously coloured card made with the True Love Designer Series Paper from this year's Jan/Jun Mini and a desk calendar made with the Dandy Garden Suite! Click on the photo for a larger view. (of any of the photos)


i get mail 5

My friend, Sandra Donald, made this daisy-fresh birthday card for me. It's a fancy-fold called the Joy Fold but it also has a Z Fold element to it!

i get mail 6

This one Kim Findlater made me from herself, using one of my favourite all time stamp sets, First Frost! Clean and simple, but oh, so beautiful! And because Kim has a wood-burning craft/business as well, she made me this:

i get mail 7

See if you can guess what it is!


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This one is very special, made by Eunice Stoneman, who took the time to create this for me, despite dealing with some very impacting events on her life recently. The cheerful, bright yellow palette of the card is so uplifting. I hope it was for her, too, as she made it!

i get mail 9

This last beautiful card was crafted by my friend and downline, Dianne Gough using the Sale-A-Bration Corner Bouquet stamp set and her signature butterfly! I love the way she added the sponging behind the image and used Wink of Stella on her butterfly!

I have to say that these are all beautiful cards and I was so proud to receive them and display them in my home and on my blog! Leave some love for these craftspeople below in the comments!

 

i get mail 10
If you live in Canada, and don't have a Stampin' Up! demonstrator, I'd love to be yours. I can help you with ideas, get you catalogues and provide you with Stampin' Up products. You can leave a message in the comments or contact me using any of the methods listed in the right side bar at the top of the page. You can shop with me from anywhere in Canada by clicking on the SHOP NOW button in the top menu from my Online Store.


Monday, January 25, 2021

Treasures of Life for Monday Morning Live!

treasures of life 1

 The first time I saw this stamp set, Treasures of Life, my heart melted. This cling stamp set was inspired by Million Sales Achiever Gail Murray and I know she must also be a grandma because I have some photos that are very like the ones in this stamp set! And the sentiments almost make me want to wipe away a tear or two. 

I've been dying to use it and I decided to make it a Monday Morning Facebook Live video today, because it's a great set to demonstrate using the Watercolour Pencils. So I will be going live with the tutorial on my Facebook page, Playing with Papercrafting at 11 am PST, and you can find the list of materials and measurements here.

             

It's a great set to use with the Watercolour Pencils because it has a sketchy style and that make the sketchy look of the pencils appropriate. Of course, you don't have to keep that sketchy look. You can use the blender pen with them and smooth out the colour to blend it. If you're doing that on Very Vanilla or Basic White cardstock, you must be careful not to go over and over it or your cardstock will begin to break down and pill. 

You can also use the Water Painters with it, but then be sure to start on the Watercolour Paper.

treasures of life 2

  • Start with a Crumb Cake card base cut at 8 1/2" x 5 1/2" and score at 4 1/4" on the 8 1/2" side. 
  • Cover with 2 designs from the In Good Taste Designer Series Paper, as shown, the larger on cut to 4" x 5 1/4" and the smaller one cut to 3 3/4" x 5".
  • I used a strip of Very Vanilla cardstock measuring 3" x 9" to stamp the images on, leaving room for sentiments, if stamping them directly on the DSP isn't successful. I stamped each image in Memento Tuxedo Black ink.

treasures of life 3

  • I used the following Watercolour Pencils to colour in the images:              Basic Gray for Grandpa's hair and pants, Cherry Cobbler for Grandpa's scarf and Jr's coat, Night of Navy and Balmy Blue for Grandpa's coat, Early Espresso for Jr's pants and Grandpa's shoes, Coastal Cabana for Jr's hat and scarf, Garden Green & Old Olive for Jr.'s boots, Calypso Coral for the skin colour, Crushed Curry highlights on Grandpa's shoes
  • Details of how to colour will be on the Facebook Live.
  • The images are die cut using a modified Stitched Rectangle die and a Stitched Shape Circle die.
  • A strip of Soft Suede, measuring 3" x 11" is used to die cut backings for the images using the Stitched So Sweetly dies and the Stitched Shape dies.
  • The sentiments are stamped right onto the DSP using the Memento Tuxedo Black ink. Should there be a problem, they can be stamped onto the vanilla cardstock and die cut using the Stitched So Sweetly dies and glued on.
  • After being mounted on the backings the images can be adhered to the card using dimensionals on the front and Seal in the interior.
Here are my six grandchildren, that really are the treasures of my long life:

grandkids 1
Kesten and Cedar

grandkids 2
Parker and Jackson

grandkids 2
Wyatt and Pippa




treasures of life 4

If you live in Canada, and don't have a Stampin' Up! demonstrator, I'd love to be yours. I can help you with ideas, get you catalogues and provide you with Stampin' Up products. You can leave a message in the comments or contact me using any of the methods listed in the right side bar at the top of the page. You can shop with me from anywhere in Canada by clicking on the SHOP NOW button in the top menu or clicking on any of products below from my Online Store.

Product List
Blender Pens
[102845]
$16.25