Sweet Cupcake for The Paper Players

I'm working on planning some Make & Takes for my One Day Crop to Aid Refugees on May 27th, and I wanted something that wasn't too much trouble to prepare but something that looks pretty cool when completed to give the stamper a sense of achievement. I thought I would try something using Sweet Cupcake, which uses 3 step stamping for a newer technique for them to try. This one is not too difficult to achieve either, because it is easy to line up the three stamps for perfect placement. This works really well with the challenge at The Paper Players this week:

And I used the sketch from over at Freshly Made Sketches because it was perfect for the shape of the cupcake with the candle!

Here's a closer look:

• I really like the colour combo of Crumb Cake and Sweet Sugarplum. I don't think I've run across it yet, but it has a soft look to it. I used the striped design from the In Colour Designer Series Paper Stack. These will not be available in the next catalogue and I, for one, am really sad about that. It is so handy to have Designer Paper in every colour! Already the Brights, Subtles, Regals and Neutrals stacks have sold out, so only the In Colour Designer Series Paper Stacks are still left.
• I used a combination of Early Espresso, Crumb Cake and Sahara Sand for the cupcake paper with the 3 step stamping from the Sweet Cupcake stamp set. Remember it is easier to stamp the darkest colour first, because it makes it much easier to see to line up the other two. I used a combo of Sweet Sugarplum, Blushing Bride and Pink Pirouette for the icing, again stamping the most detailed stamp with Sweet Sugarplum first to make it easier to see and line up the other two lighter and less detailed layers.
• The candle is Sweet Sugarplum and Blushing Bride. It's only 2 steps. The flame is Crushed Curry and it's a single stamp.
• The sentiments usually come as a single sentiment in two lines, but I wanted to use the Classic Label Punch so I masked each line in turn and stamped each separately and punched them out separately.

I'm off to visit my youngest daughter and her family this weekend so I'm hoping that with all the rains and flooding, the roads will all be passable!  They've just moved to a new town and are living in a log house!

Have a great weekend!

Click on the links below to take you to my On-Line Store, where you can read about, look at, and purchase if you wish, the products used to make this card today.

Product List

Sweet Cupcake Photopolymer Stamp Set [141498]	Sweet Cupcake Photopolymer Bundle [142232]	2016-2018 In Color Designer Series Paper Stack [141408]	Crumb Cake 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock [120953]	Sweet Sugarplum 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [141418]
Whisper White 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock [100730]	Sweet Sugarplum Classic Stampin' Pad [141395]	Blushing Bride Classic Stampin' Pad [131172]	Pink Pirouette Classic Stampin' Pad [126956]	Early Espresso Classic Stampin' Pad [126974]
Crumb Cake Classic Stampin' Pad [126975]	Sahara Sand Classic Stampin' Pad [126976]	2016-2018 In Color Enamel Shapes [141410]	Classic Label Punch [141491]	Liquid Multipurpose Glue [110755]
SNAIL Permanent Adhesive [104332]	Stampin' Dimensionals [104430]

Make the World a Better Place with Stitched Shapes Framelits

What an eventful week, and an emotional one! I'm not even an American, but as a Canadian, closest neighbour to the US, we were all watching the American election with trepidation, wondering what was about to happen. And already the fall out is beginning with bigotry and hate spewing out unchecked in an appalling manner! And then there are the protest riots from the other side. It looks like anarchy and one wonders where it will all end. It reminds me of the 1960s and that the more things change, the more they remain the same. Heart-breaking, but true. My heart goes out to my American friends and readers and my prayers as well.

On the other hand, I got some amazing news today that has been 14 years in the making! In 2002, our provincial government stripped all class size and composition language from our teaching contracts that we had negotiated in lieu of pay raises, and has ever since been dismantling the BC education system piece by piece by underfunding it while they took the case from court to higher court. For fourteen years! Well today it went before the highest court in the land, and without even having to debate the issue over a period of months, like it was expected, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled from the bench in favour of the teachers! There is joy and justice in the land today!
So I've been alternating between despair and elation today and it's been a bit exhausting, but I thought I'd share with you some of the last words of a beloved Canadian politician, who passed away from cancer in 2011.

With these words to inspire me, I wanted to create a card to encourage others to be loving, hopeful and optimistic, in spite of how things look right now, and I wanted to use my new Stitched Shapes Framelits for the first time while I was at it. Imagine my surprise when I found out that my layout fits the sketch at the Mojo Monday Challenge this week:

I've just turned the square on it's corner to make a diamond shape.

• I love the combination of Mint Macaron, Bermuda Bay, Whisper White and Copper together, especially in this vintage style card. The stamp set I used was In This World from the Annual Catalogue, and I've been looking out for a way to use that one again as I love the images and the sentiments in it. 
• This sentiment was almost exactly the words I wanted to say today, but it said "You're the kind of person..." instead of "Be the kind of person...". To change that I tried to find a Be among my other stamp sets, but kind of came up short finding one that was a similar size and style. The one I did find is from the Sweet Cupcake Stamp Set where the sentiment says Best. In both cases, I used tear & tape to block the parts of the stamps I didn't want to print, inked up the stamps and then removed the tape, then stamped. It's called "masking"!
• I inked up the butterfly in Mint Macaron and then used the "Rock & Roll technique" to add some Bermuda Bay around the edges. After that, I used a Blender Pen to add some Versamark ink to the odd places and sprinkled on some Copper Stampin' Emboss Powder and heat set it with the Heat Tool. It's hard to see the shine of the copper in this photo.
• Don't you love the look of the Stitched Shapes Framelits as I used them for the main image and the sentiment and its matte. Don't they add such a finished look to the pieces? You get four of each shape: circle, oval and square for just $40.00! That's a screaming deal!
• The key was also embossed in copper embossing powder and fussy cut to add as an accent.
• The little finishing touches included some Metallic Copper Thread, a Delicate White Doily, and some Mint Macaron Mini Striped Ribbon. along the bottom.

Click on the links below to take you to my On-Line Store, where you can read about, look at, and purchase if you wish, the products used to make this card today.

Product List

In This World Wood-Mount Stamp Set [141946]	In This World Clear-Mount Stamp Set [142652]	Sweet Cupcake Photopolymer Stamp Set [141498]	Brights Designer Series Paper Stack [138434]	Blooms & Bliss Designer Series Paper [141654]
Whisper White 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock [100730]	Bermuda Bay 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock [131197]	Versamark Pad [102283]	Mint Macaron Classic Stampin' Pad [138326]	Bermuda Bay Classic Stampin' Pad [131171]
Blender Pens [102845]	Copper Stampin' Emboss Powder [141636]	Heat Tool [129053]	Copper Metallic Thread [141696]	Delicate White Doilies [141701]
Mint Macaron 5/8" (1.6 Cm) Mini Striped Ribbon [141431]	Stitched Shapes Framelits Dies [145372]	Big Shot [143263]	Paper Snips Scissors [103579]	Liquid Multipurpose Glue [110755]
Stampin' Dimensionals [104430]	Tear & Tape Adhesive [138995]