Today is the February Happy Stampers Blog Hop! The theme this month is Birthday projects – which is timely, since a bunch of us signed up to be part of the Birthday Bomb. That’s where the people who sign up all send a B-day card to everyone else on the list on their birthday (was that the Department of Redundancy Department?!?!). So everyone gets a bunch of wonderful, handmade SU-product birthday cards. Fun, huh? This hop theme gives us all a chance to pump up our stash of b-day cards to use for the bomb and all our friends and relatives through the year. Several of us threw our hats in the ring this month to take part in the hop, so be sure to check out the other ladies’ projects after you browse thru mine! AND – the part I know you’re waiting for! – we’re all giving out a little sumpin-sumpin for Blog Candy (best kind of candy there is!), so be sure to see them all!
Getcha a cuppa something yummy and stretch out a little bit. We’re each sharing two projects today so this is gonna be a long one!
My first card for you was inspired by Mojo Monday Sketch 386:
I used the Best Year Ever DSP (Sale-A-Bration) as a color-jumping-off-point, starting with a Sahara Sand tall-and-skinny card base. I built the front of the card by starting with a Whisper White Card Stock panel that I stamped with the Something Lacy background stamp in Crumb Cake. The horizontal piece is from the Best Year Ever DSP and is SNAIL’d right to the stamped mat.
I built the next layer by embossing a piece of Whisper White CS with the Lovely Lace Textured Impressions Embossing Folder and adhering it to another Sahara Sand Card Stock mat with SNAIL. I wrapped some Crushed Curry Baker’s Twine around the layered piece, securing it on the back with some plain tape. Then I stamped another piece of Whisper White CS with the flower image in the Crazy About You stamp set and cut it out with the Flower Medallion punch. (Attention. This is a funds-efficiency public service announcement: this punch can be bundled with the Petal Potpourri Stamp set in the Occasions catalog. AND – it also punches this flower in Crazy About You. That’s what we call getting more bang for your buck! We now return you to your regularly scheduled Blog Hop).
I ran another little piece of Crushed Curry Baker’s Twine through one of the little metal buttons in the Occasions Catalog Artisan Embellishment Kit and made a little bow. Uhh – it’s all just kinda….”little”, I guess! ;0 Then I glued it to the center of the flower with Multipurpose Liquid Glue, and Dimensional’d the whole thing to the front of the mat. The sentiment comes from the Itty Bitty Banner Bundle and is stamped in Crushed Curry and cut with the matching die in the Big Shot. Then I SNAIL’d it to a piece of the Best Year Ever DSP and fussy cut a little mat out. I SNAIL’d it to the mat, aligning it below the wrapped baker’s twine and under the flower.
Adhering the whole layered front mat to the card base with Dimensionals finished up the front of the card. I treated the inside to a Whisper White liner, with a couple of leftover pieces of Sahara Sand CS and some more Best Year Ever DSP.
Just to finish everything off, I used a final scrap piece of the DSP to line the inside of a Crumb Cake Medium Envelope flap. And here’s how the whole thing turned out!
I think it turned out kind of pretty and I like the kind of tone-on-tone thing goin’ on with the pops of complementary colors.
Y’all still with me? Good. I’ll wait a few minutes if you need to take a break…..10….9….8….7….6….5 4 3 2 1! And, we’re back.
Card two was inspired by my little ole brain. I kind of stayed with a similar color theme, but with a different twist. And, for some reason, I wanted it to be a small note card, so I used the measurements of the SU Note Cards and Envelopes.
Ever since reading about coloring on vellum with the Blendabilities, I’d been wanting to give it a try, and I really wanted to color that gorgeous flower branch in the Indescribable Gift set (it’s not just for Easter!). Here’s what I came up with – take a look-see!
First I stamped the flower image onto a piece of vellum with Versamark Ink and sprinkled it with SU Early Espresso Embossing Powder. I carefully heat embossed it, keeping my heat tool moving. It did curl the vellum a little bit, but I lightly heated the back side while speaking steely to it and it straightened out and flew right. Then, I got down to the fun stuff! I pulled out my Pink Pirouette, Wild Wasabi, Calypso Coral and the Skin Tone Assortment Blendabilities. I colored with the Pink Pirouette first, flooding with the light color and then blending in the medium and darker colors. Trick here is to do small sections at a time, so that the colors blend all by themselves. Then, I used the lightest Calypso Coral to just touch on some of the darker “shaded” areas. The leaves got a similar treatment (okay, no Calypso Coral on those), with the Wild Wasabi blendies. I used the two darkest pens in the Skin Tone Assortment for the branches. Then I patiently let it all dry. No, not really so patiently!
But dry it finally was, so I used a little liquid glue to adhere it to a Sahara Sand CS mat (staying as close to the edges as possible), and then SNAIL’d all THAT to a Pink Pirouette mat. Using some scraps of Sahara Sand, I cut the “frame” pieces out with the Edgelits die (foreshadowing here….blog candy……) and adhered them over the edge of the vellum with tiny dabs of Liquid Multipurpose Glue. I made sure the corners were as straight and lined up as possible and then sort of finished them off with 4 of the smallest pearls in the Artisan Embellishment Kit. Then, I stamped the sentiment from the Petite Pairs set in Crumb Cake and wrapped some Blushing Bride Baker’s Twine around and finished it with a nice little bow.
Adhering the mat art to the Sahara Sand card base with Stampin’ Dimensionals finished off the front of the card!
On the inside, I stamped part of the same flower image in the bottom corner of a piece of Whisper White CS and colored it in the manner as the front image. I completed the sentiment from Petite Pairs in Crumb Cake and called it a day!
Hope that you enjoyed these two shares – they were fun to make. The flower from Indescribable Gift is just beautiful and colors very nicely!
It’s almost time that you can order the new Sale-A-Bration products. Here’s a reminder of what they are:
Click HERE to see a flyer on the new products, including some great ideas of how to use them!
And – if you’re craving a Big Shot or any of the items used in these cards, remember that Sale-A-Bration is a GREAT time to do a workshop – even if it’s a home-based one, where everyone just orders from the catalog. The potential for lots of free Hostess Dollars is truly at its highest right now! Here’s the full scoop.
BLOG CANDY BLOG CANDY BLOG CANDY!!!!!!!
Remember the Edgelits? Well, you COULD score those and some bling for your card-making fun. There’s a package of the Edgelits Dies, Rhinestone Basic Jewels and a package of Bermuda Bay Baker’s Twine.
Leave a comment below and tell me which of the new SAB products you’re most anxious to get your hands (and what you’re thinking of doing with it!) before 7 AM ET on Tuesday, 3 Mar 15 and you’ll be entered to win. I’ll have the random number generator pick a comment on Tuesday morning and then I’ll announce the winner on my blog that day! Please note, anyone is welcome to leave me a comment but I am only able to ship the blog candy items to addresses within the United States. Thanks for your understanding.
With that, scroll down right quick-like and leave your Blog-Candy-entering-comment and then come back up here and check out the other stops on the Blog Hop. Folks, this is one seriously talented group of ladies – and you NEED to see what they have to offer you today!
Okay, on with the hop! To hop back to Sandi MacIver’s Blog, click the Back arrow button. To move forward to Kristi Gray’s Blog, click the Forward arrow button.
In case you get lost along the way, here is a list of the Happy Stampers Team Members who are joining in this blog hop:
Amy Koenders – www.stampwithAmyK.com
Sandi MacIver – www.stampingwithSandi.com
Mary Deatherage – http://www.stampsnlingers.com <<<<You are here!
Kristi Gray – www.stampingwithkristi.com
Heather Van Looy – www.handcraftingwithheather.com
TTFN
Mary
FEBRUARY 1 – 28 HOSTESS CODE: RKBPBNYM Use this hostess code when you order and receive a free gift from me! But, if your order is over $150, please do not use this code (you’ll miss out on your own Stampin’ Rewards/Hostess $$ if you use it) but you’ll still get the free gift. The free gift for February is your choice of any item valued up to $4.95 in either the 2014-15 Annual Catalog or the 2015 Occasions Catalog!
Here are the card cuts for today’s projects:
Birthday Card #1:
Sahara Sand Cardstock: 3 3/4″ x 10 1/2″ (card base – score and fold at 5 1/2″); 3 1/8″ x 4 3/8″ (mat for embossed panel); 1″ x 3 1/2″ (inside embellishment mat)
Whisper White Card Stock: 3 1/2″ x 5″ (Something Lacy stamped panel); 4 1/4″ x 3″ (embossed panel); Sentiment banner; Flower Medallion; 3 1/2″ x 5″ (inner liner)
Best Year Ever DSP: 3 1/2″ x 3″ (Calypso Coral mat); fussy cut sentiment mat; 7/8″ x 4″ (inner liner strip); envelope flap
Whisper White Card Stock: Bitty Butterfly punches; 5 1/4″ x 4″ (Inside liner)
Birthday Card #2:
Sahara Sand Card Stock: 5″ x 7″ (card base – score and fold at 3 1/2″); 3 1/4″ x 4 3/4″ (art piece mat); Frame pieces cut with Edgelits
Pink Pirouette Card Stock: 3 3/8″ x 4 7/8″ (front mat)
Vellum: 3 1/4″ x 3 3/4″ (art piece)
STAMPIN’ UP! ITEMS USED IN THIS PROJECT:
Built for Free Using: My Stampin Blog
Built for Free Using: My Stampin Blog
It’s Sale-A-Bration Time!! Earn a free item for every $50 that you purchase. Click here to read all about it.
Shop the Clearance Rack here.
Earn FREE Stampin’ Up! Products – Join my Punkin Head Peppermint Rewards – My online customer thank you program!
Backorder Report – as of 25 Feb 15
Currently, the following items are on BACKORDER; backordered items will be available on or before the date indicated.
140594: Lovely Amazing You Photopolymer Stamp Set–March 2
101731: Whisper White Craft Stampin’ Pad–March 3
126956: Pink Pirouette Classic Stampin’ Pad–March 3
112983: Customer Order Form (50)–March 5
131527: Whisper White Note Cards & Envelopes–March 6
Currently the following items are NOT ORDERABLE:
130995: Cherry Cobbler Assortment Stampin’ Blendabilities Markers
130998: Daffodil Delight Assortment Stampin’ Blendabilities Markers
130999: Old Olive Assortment Stampin’ Blendabilities Markers
130997: Pumpkin Pie Assortment Stampin’ Blendabilities Markers
137951: So You Simply Created Kit
137950: The Perpetual Birthday Calendar Project Kit
131262: Regals Stampin’ Write Markers
126199: Stampin’ Pierce Mat
126189: Paper Piercing Tool
Currently, the following items have LOW INVENTORY and will move to the “Not Orderable” list (above) once our current inventory is depleted:
137866: Sahara Sand 7/8″ Lace Trim
131003: Rich Razzleberry Assortment Stampin’ Blendabilities Markers