January 2011 – Page 2

My Blog-iversary Celebration!

January 12, 2011 Jentimko 24 Comments

Technically, my blog-iversary was last week (Jan. 5th) but this seemed a better week to celebrate. As promised, I am bringing you a box tutorial today and, as part of the celebration, some blog candy! Ohh, I love blog candy!! Since the box used to make the tutorial is already spoken for, I made another one with a little set of matching cards. Now in order to be in the running to win this set, you have to do two things. First you have to leave me a comment and (a little harder) tell me which of my cards has been your favorite over the last year (I love to see which ones are really hits!). I will randomly choose a winner from all the comments left through 10pm EST on Sunday, Jan. 16th and announce the winner on Monday. Winner must have a U.S. mailing address. I think my favorite is from the post Monochromatic Wish and I used this as a model for some of my Christmas cards this year. Now to the tutorial.

Start with 2 pieces of card stock measuring 4 1/8″ x 6″, 2 pieces of designer paper measuring 3 1/4″ x 4 3/8″ and 2 pieces of designer paper measuring 3 1/4″ x 7/8″. Any additional embellishments are up to you. Score the card stock along the long side at 4 1/2″ and 5 1/2″ and on the short side at 3/4″. Fold along all the score lines and cut off the little rectangle as shown in the picture.

Attach the designer paper and then run a line of Sticky Strip down the narrow flap on each piece of card stock. Pull the red protection layer off of one strip and attach it to the inner side of the large rectange on the sister piece of stock. Finish the sides of the box by doing the same with the other narrow flap.

Tuck the little bottom flaps in first and then run another line of Sticky Strip along one of the bottom flaps (the one that will be at the outside of the box bottom). Now you can decorate the box however you want! This will hold 4-5 cards and their envelopes depending on the decorations on the cards. I like that you can see the top part of the cards and any stamping on the envelopes. It is also great because it is super quick to put together…perfect as a gift or blog candy!!

Oh, yes…back to the blog candy! Here are some pictures of the set you are entering for:

This is a four card set with two “thanks” cards and two “for you” cards. Only four fit in the box because of the size of the bow. That said, it would be easy to give the box more depth by simply making the stock a little longer and scoring wider apart. I used the Friends Never Fade stamp set and the Greenhouse Gala DSP to decorate this box and make the cards. They are done in Pear Pizzazz, Early Espresso and Whisper White.

I pulled out the tag punches and flowers cut from Greenhouse Gala to make the little tag on the box. It was stamped with Teeny Tiny Wishes, a wonderfully versatile set that I reach for all the time! The bow on the cards uses the technique I showed in a previous tutorial – Ribbons and Bows. The only difference is that I left tails on the cards’ bows. This is a bow I use all the time and I can show that further if there is enough interest (just let me know by your comments). The bow on the box uses a threaded button to cinch it down but is very similar. I tried to keep the embellishments down to a minimum since the simplicity is part of the joy of this project!

This first year with the blog has had quite a learning curve and I so appreciate the lovely comments and support you have given. Things to look for in the upcoming year…a new Demonstrator Based Web Site (DBWS) where you can order from the comfort of your home (coming Jan. 17th), added features to help with the blog ease of use and, of course, more projects! Thanks for stopping by today. I can’t wait to see your comments!

Stamps: Say It Simply (Occasions Mini), Friends Never Fade; Paper: Greenhouse Gala DSP, Pear Pizzazz, Early Espresso, Whisper White; Ink: Pear Pizzazz, Early Espresso; Accessories: Espresso Satin Ribbon, Neutrals Buttons, Sticky Strip, Glue Dots

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SUOC 10 – Hello Baby

January 11, 2011 Jentimko 10 Comments

Our challenge over at SUO Challenges today is to create baby cards (or anything related to babies like baptisms, showers, etc.). Talk about great timing! A sweet friend of mine just had her first baby and I knew just what I wanted to make for her. One of the greatest things I got when my oldest was born was a set of cards for him. I had no idea then how many thank-you cards I would need for all the fantastic support I would receive. I just knew that the new mommy would appreciate some cards for her little one. Ever since she found out she was pregnant, the baby has been called their little monkey and the nursury is full of wonderful monkey themed items. Naturally, the monkey from Fox & Friends was required for this project! Here is the total set and then I’ll follow up with individual shots and specifics:

I made a box with five thank-you notes and a coordinating gift card. The box template was created by me to accomodate the 4 1/4″ x 4 1/4″ cards and their envelopes (details on the box will follow tomorrow). I made two styles of gift cards, one with an Early Espresso base and one with an Old Olive, that are very similar. Finally I wanted a more personalized gift card for little Logan.

Logan’s nursery is decorated in green and brown so I used a design from the Play Date DSP as a starting point. I really wanted to put the baby’s name on the card but didn’t have an alphabet set that was the right size. Hmmm…what to do?? My Digital Studio (MDS) to the rescue!! You may recognize the letters as the ABC Alphabet Lower. The beautiful thing with MDS is that I can re-size things and that is just what I did here by shrinking the letters a little. I printed it out on Whisper White card stock and then cut it to the layer size I wanted. Of course the colors coordinate perfectly since MDS uses just the right color codes. The rest of the card was really quick with a stamp of the monkey in Early Espresso and a little piercing with my piercing tool. I tied on a little bit of Early Espresso Satin Ribbon to finish.

You can get a better look at the front of the box here and the two styles of cards. I really just flipped the card stock colors and tied the buttons on opposite sides. This makes the cards stack a little nicer in the box. The sentiment is from Say It Simply (Occasions Mini) and seems to be just the right word set for everything I am making lately.

Here is the box with all the cards in place and the gift card. I did stamp the envelopes too just to complete the package.

I hope that she loves this little set. Mommy is one of my stampers who moved away and I want her to know how happy we are for her and her husband! I hope that you can play along with this challenge (remember that you have two weeks to play). Don’t forget to stop over at the SUO Challenges site to see the other amazing projects! Thanks for stopping in today. Please join me again tomorrow for the box tutorial and a blogiversary celebration!

Stamps: Fox & Friends, Teeny Tiny Wishes, Short & Sweet (inside card); Paper: Play Date DSP, Early Espresso, Old Olive, Whisper White; Ink: Early Espresso, Old Olive; Accessories: Early Espresso Satin Ribbon, Old Olive Wide Grosgrain Ribbon, Designer Buttons (Brights and Neutrals), Mat Pack, Paper Piercing Tool, Glue Dots, Sticky Strip, My Digital Studio

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ColorLab 23

January 6, 2011 Jentimko 11 Comments

Welcome to the first ColorLab Challenge of the new year! Our first color combination is so beautiful, so spring-like, so….well you get the point. I love it! Take a look:

The new focus this year for the color challenges is to use the actual ColorLab as the inspiration. If you ever wonder “what goes with ____ (color of choice)”, then this is the place for you! We all have our go-to palettes but struggle with certain others. This will help you put colors together that are sure to work!

My card today was one of the last thank-yous that I needed post-Christmas. I told you that my stamping resolution was to try to get cards out on time and I only needed one more. Pretty good, given my normal track record. I’ll say that this one came together quickly since I was definitely ready for a change of pace.

Marina Mist is really a fantastic blue. I admit that I hadn’t take a serious look at it until recently. I was so excited to see Baja Breeze come back in the Color Revolution and then I was straight into Christmas stamping. I can’t wait to use this one more (and to get more coordinating accessories…translated, taffeta and satin ribbon). The grosgrain I used was a gift from my upline who knew I would fall in love with it. The background paper is the Playdate DSP and the Pear Paper comes from Greenhouse Gala. I inked up the flower from Friends Never Fade using my Stampin’ Write markers and used the sentiment from Say It Simply (Occasions Mini). I love that the DSPs do all of the work and make the most of a basic layout!

Don’t forget to go over to the ColorLab Challenge and see the fantastic work of the other designers! I’m going to be un-decorating my house for the next few days but I have another fantastic project planned for Tuesday and the next SUO Challenge. Thanks for stopping by…see you soon!

Stamps: Friends Never Fade, Say It Simply (Occasions Mini); Paper: Play Date DSP, Greenhouse Gala DSP, Marina Mist, Whisper White; Ink: Marina Mist, So Saffron, Pear Pizzazz; Accessories: Marina Mist Narrow Grosgrain, Neutrals Designer Buttons, Dimensionals

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Fabulous Wishes

January 5, 2011 Jentimko 13 Comments

Today I was inspired by all kinds of challenges and actually managed to group three of them together! You may notice that I have been using a lot of hostess sets with my cards and today is no different. This is to remind you of how many amazing sets are available FREE! Oh, I love free! With Sale-a-bration right around the corner and the new Occasions Mini already available, now is a great time to become a hostess.

I am sending out the last of my thank-you cards today (so far, so good on the resolution!) and now want to get ahead on some upcoming birthdays. Perfect timing since Stampin’ Royalty is celebrating their birthday with a birthday card challenge. Arielle is their new Goddess so I thought it fitting to use her ColourQ Challenge #66:

Beautiful colors, aren’t they?? Finally, I used the Splitcoaststampers Sketch Challenge 314 for my layout.

I don’t have any Soft Sky so I substituted with Baja Breeze. I think it has the same feel to it. I used the Framed Tulips Embossing Folder again but created a rectangle using a similar method as Sharon Field did at Created By You. My rectangle is 2 1/2″ x 4 1/8″. I simply used the short side of the folder instead of the long one. My flowers are one of the two-step stamps from Fast & Fabulous (hostess level 2). I started by inking with So Saffron and Daffodil Delight and then added Baja Breeze (these were all Stampin’ Write markers). I took a sponge dauber to the stamp to soften any edges to the colors. The outline was stamped in Basic Black. A little “flag” was created by snipping a rectangle and tucking the still square end under a black button (Neutrals Designer Buttons). I colored my thread with the Baja Breeze marker. The image panel is popped up on dimensionals and another dimensional tucked under the raised section of the flag. The beautiful paper is from the main catalog’s Greenhouse Gala DSP.

I’ll be back tomorrow with another beautiful color combination from the ColorLab Color Challenge. Thanks for stopping in…see you soon!

Stamps: Teeny Tiny Wishes, Fast & Fabulous; Paper: Daffodil Delight, Basic Black, Greenhouse Gala DSP, Whisper White; Ink: So Saffron, Daffodil Delight, Baja Breeze, Basic Black; Accessories: Neutrals Designer Buttons, Stamp-a-ma-jig, Sponge Dauber, Dimensionals, Thread (non-SU)

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Say it with Style!

January 3, 2011 Jentimko 18 Comments

Happy New Year and welcome to my new followers! I was so motivated by the weekend’s Stampin’ Addicts Occasions Mini Blog Hop and couldn’t wait to get stamping this week. My first job this year to show you how to make the square frame from my hop cards. While I would love to take credit for the idea, Sharon Field over at Created By You is the originator of the technique I used. I had been playing around with ways to do this but she figured it out first! I simply modified her instructions to make the square. Since many people are visual learners, I have taken pictures of what I did.

Start with a 4 1/8″ x 4 1/8″ square and line it up so that you have equal spacing on three sides. Roll it through the Big Shot and it will look like this:

Next, take the card stock and slide it down so that the bottom lines up with the bottom design of the folder. You should be able to feel the design slide into the “grooves” and it will match up with the folder (except the unembossed bottom, of course).

It will look like this from the other side and you can check your placement.

As Sharon specifies, start to roll it through your Big Shot but only a little bit. Estimate how much roll it takes to emboss only the bottom design (she says about 3/4 of a turn). Then back the design out. And here is the final square. The pressure of the Big Shot flattens the previous design and forms the corners nicely!

My card from the Blog Hop was given away as a card set for Christmas so I “had” to create a new one, of course.

I inked up part of the image from the Elements of Style stamp and then colored it in with Pink Pirouette, Rose Red and Basic Gray. The sentiment is from the new set Say It Simply. I brought in an Antique Brad because it went so well with the gray. The ribbon, I must confess, is retired Basic Gray Taffeta. Given that I have a ribbon “collecting” (okay, hoarding) problem, I am trying to use up some of my retired items. To save you some time, the Basic Gray piece of the inner square is 3″ x 3″.

This is also for the Creative Crew Catalog Focus Challenge over at Splitcoaststampers. It is a challenge to use new items from the Mini. Check out the link to see more fabulous projects from the Creative Crew.

Thanks for stopping in today. I wish you a safe and happy new year filled with loads of creativity!

Stamps: Say It Simply, Elements of Style; Paper: Basic Gray, Pink Pirouette, Whisper White; Ink: Basic Black, Pink Pirouette, Rose Red, Basic Gray; Accessories: Big Shot, Framed Tulips Embossing Folder, Antique Brads, Basic Gray Taffeta (retired), Blender Pen, Dimensionals

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