Stars at Night Bundle for As You See It Challenge #311

 Here are both a cool product and a cool challenge! The product is the Stars at Night Hybrid Embossing Folder, and the challenge is As You See It Challenge #311, a recipe challenge entitled, Recipe for Holiday Spirit! To understand the Recipe challenge, you need to see the Challenge Banner, below:

As concocted by Team Member, Jane, we have to use all the elements shown on the challenge banner, but how we do that is up to us. I wanted to have the front of my card fulfill the requirements of the Challenge, but I wanted to also use the Night Divine Bundle on the inside of my card, so I used a modified Gate Fold for my card base. Take a closer look at both the inside and the outside:

• Score the 4 1/4" x 11" Gray Granite card base at 2 3/4" from each end along the long edge. This gives a 5 1/2" x 4 1/4" center and two 2 3/4" x 4 1/4" flaps, which, when closed, make the finished closed card 5 1/2" x 4 1/4" standard size.
• From the O Holy Night Designer Series Paper (Patterned Paper), I chose the above design and cut a 4" piece from it. To get the right amount of sand and night sky, though, I had to cut off a strip of sand first. I cut that 12" x 4" strip into a 2 1/2" piece, a 5 1/4" piece and another 2 1/2" piece for the inside. 
• I ran them all through the Stars at Night Embossing Folder so that just the sky was embossed with the stars. I adhered them all to the inside card base with an 1/8" border all around each piece. For the outside I cut a piece of just night sky design measuring 5 1/4" x 4" and ran that through using the Stars at night embossing folder as well. I made sure that the stars were oriented the correct way.
• I cut down that piece into two pieces, each measuring 2 1/2" x 4" and adhered them to the front panels.
• Using the Stars at Night Hybrid Embossing Folder which involves the addition of a coordinating die inside the embossing folder, I used some of the Antique Distressed Gold Specialty paper and die cut/embossed some stars to create some 3D stars with. I also die cut the next level using Gold Foil. I hand built 2 gold stars by layering these and finishing off with Adhesive Backed Star Trinkets. I added one to the center of the split between the two sides on the front, adhering only on the right side. The other was added to the center panel on the inside.

• I die cut the stable from some old Coredinations cardstock in Early Espresso. I sanded it down so the grain would really show up and made the legs shorter by cutting off the bottom of the legs and mounting it underneath the existing legs. I added the stable to the center panel.
• I die cut the various figures using the Night Divine Dies and added them to the card center and side flaps.

• I heat embossed the two sentiments in gold embossing powder and heat set them. The small one I fussy cut and glued to the card front. The larger one was die cut with the second largest stitched square from Stylish Shapes dies and added to the inside flap left.

• I used Night of Navy & Gold Glittered Ribbon to create a belly band to keep the card closed (and fulfill the challenge criteria) and tied it in a square knot.
• They were completed with small gold Blooming Pearls in the center of a few embossed stars.

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

Night Divine Cling Stamp Set (English) [161987] $37.00	Night Divine Bundle (English) [161997] $66.50	Stars At Night Bundle (English) [162007] $78.25	Stars At Night Hybrid Embossing Folder [162006] $54.00	O Holy Night 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 Cm) Designer Series Paper [161986] $17.00
Distressed Gold 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 Cm) Specialty Paper [159237] $7.00	Gold Foil Sheets [132622] $7.00	Gray Granite 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [146983] $13.75	Basic White 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock [159276] $14.50	Night Of Navy 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [100867] $13.75
Early Espresso 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [119686] $13.75	Pecan Pie 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock [161717] $13.75	Versamark Pad [102283] $13.00	Metallics Embossing Powders [155555] $25.00	Heat Tool (Us And Canada) [129053] $43.00
Night Of Navy & Gold 1/2" (1.3 Cm) Glittered Ribbon [162011] $12.25	Adhesive Backed Star Trinkets [162010] $11.00	Blooming Pearls [162238] $11.00	Stars At Night Hybrid Embossing Folder [162006] $54.00	Night Divine Dies [161996] $37.00
Stampin' Cut & Emboss Machine [149653] $175.00	Stampin' Seal [152813] $11.00	Multipurpose Liquid Glue [110755] $7.50	Mini Glue Dots [103683] $8.00	Mini Stampin' Dimensionals [144108] $6.00

Beary Cute for As You See It Challenge #310

 

Vellum. One of the most versatile and lovely materials we crafters get to play with! Have you used vellum much? Do you have a favourite technique you like to use it with? If so then you will want to play along with As You See It Challenges #310 today, because we have a Fill-In-The-Blank Challenge that asks what your favourite way of using vellum is! Here's the challenge banner, created by yours truly:

My favourite thing to use vellum for is alcohol ink blended backgrounds, as you can see in the background of this card using the Beary Cute bundle:

• To make the alcohol ink blended background, I took a 5 1/2" x 4 1/4" piece of vellum and scribbled various patches of Stampin' Blends markers in different shades of blues including Dark Night of Navy, Dark Pool Party, Dark Balmy Blue and Dark Tahitian Tide from the top left to the bottom right of the sheet.
• I then spritzed them with 99% isopropyl alcohol. Make sure it is at least 97% alcohol, or the water content will be too great and your vellum will curl up and be unusable. You can let the alcohol sit until it dries, or you can let it run a bit and dry it with a heat tool, depending on the look you want. Here, I let it run a bit and dried it with a heat tool. I adhered the sheet onto the Basic White Thick card base.
• On regular Basic White cardstock, I stamped the tree image, the two bears, the small snowflake and the gift in Memento ink, as you see here.
• I stamped the tree filler image in Shaded Spruce, then again, slightly offset with Pool Party, to add a bit of a snowy effect and some depth. I coloured in the outlines of the polar bears with Light Pool Party Stampin' Blends marker and the stripes on the gift with Light Tahitian Tide.
• I stamped the scarf image on the larger bear using Tahitian Tide ink and stamped the toque on a separate piece of Basic White with Lost Lagoon ink.
• I fussy cut the tree down to a section of ice where the bears were sitting or standing right to the edge of the paper at 4 1/4". I added this section to the card front, on top of the vellum, using dimensionals. I adhered the toque to the head of the small bear.
• I stamped the sentiment in Memento and die cut it using the Stylish Shapes dies, modified to make a rectangle. I adhered it with Stampin' Seal. 
• I added Glitter Sequins and Wink of Stella.

Here's a new idea for an advent calendar - the latest in the Stampin' Up! Kit Collection. Look closer:

You can shop for this wonderful kit by clicking on this link: Rustic Christmas Countdown Kit

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

Beary Cute Photopolymer Stamp Set (English) [162016] $34.00	Vellum 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [101856] $13.75	Basic White 8 1/2" X 11" Thick Cardstock [159229] $12.25	Basic White 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock [159276] $14.50	Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad [132708] $9.00
Shaded Spruce Classic Stampin' Pad [147088] $12.25	Pool Party Classic Stampin' Pad [147107] $12.25	Tahitian Tide Classic Stampin' Pad [159210] $12.25	Lost Lagoon Classic Stampin' Pad [161678] $12.25	Night Of Navy Stampin' Blends Combo Pack [154891] $13.75
Balmy Blue Stampin' Blends Combo Pack [154830] $13.75	Tahitian Tide Stampin' Blends Combo Pack [159221] $13.75	Pool Party Stampin' Blends Combo Pack [154894] $13.75	Stampin' Spritzer [126185] $5.50	Adhesive Backed Glitter Sequins [162029] $11.00
Paper Snips [103579] $15.00	Stylish Shapes Dies [159183] $41.00	Stampin' Cut & Emboss Machine [149653] $175.00	Multipurpose Liquid Glue [110755] $7.50	Stampin' Seal [152813] $11.00
Stampin' Dimensionals [104430] $6.00