the CLASSroom

Spooky Facebook Candy

We are "trick or treating" over on Facebook today. Come on over and join us - all you need to do to see our Facebook page is to click "like" on the *Find us on Facebook" in the left column below :-D

A Quick Gift Box For All Seasons and Reasons

Last minute gifts are always tough, and finding a way to package them can be even harder. Why not combine the two using some of your fun paper crafting products?

A few miniature chocolates wrapped in beautiful paper and presented in a box that was made to match is an easy way to impress the recipient with your clever and sweet ways. Even if the interior hints at something a little more sinister, they won't be able to resist nibbling on a piece or two before dinner.

The finished 4" x 5" size of these boxes will snuggle 15 little Treasures in ghoulishly delightful comfort. To wrap the chocolates in style you will need to cut 1" x 3" pieces of the different patterns of paper that you like.

For the Halloween boxes I used the Hocus Pocus line from Pink Paislee.

Prepare two pieces of patterned paper of your liking. For the bottom of the box you will need a piece that is cut at 7" wide and 8" tall. Take care in your planning if you are trying to center one of the designs in your project.

For the top of the box you will need a piece that is 12" wide and 5" tall.

Score the bottom at 3/4" and 1 1/2" from each of the edges. You should be left with an inside piece that is the same size and the finished dimensions of the box. 4" x 5".

Fold the inside score up and the outer down. Then you will trim into the center along the inner score just into the box bottom on the top and bottom of the paper.

Then place double sided adhesive tape along the edges.

Remove the protective backing from the top piece of adhesive and fold it back onto itself along the score line. Repeat on bottom.

Place four more pieces of double sided adhesive onto the "tabs" that were created.

Remove the protective backing and adhere to the side of the box after you fold it up.

 

Then remove the protective backing from the tape on the side and adhere into place.

Remove backing from tape on the other side.

Press into place and now the box bottom is complete.

For the top, center your design if necessary and then score the top at 3 3/16" and 3 15/16" and 8 1/16" and 8 13/16". If that is making your brain hurt as much as it did mine to try to describe to you, the idea is that you want the top to be able to slide easily on and off of the box bottom. So the top needs to measure barely over 4" width of the box bottom and barely over the 3/4" over the depth of the box. Hopefully one of those two descriptions will get you there.

Before I adhered the sliding top together I stamped on it and adhered some letter stickers for the sentiment.

And with more holidays around the corner to celebrate, why not make neighbor, co-worker and teacher gifts.  :o)

These are fun, easy and so very cute. Sit down and make a bunch at one time, then set a few of them aside for those unexpected situations when you need a gift in a hurry. If you don't have a fan of chocolate on your gift list, it is a great size for other types of treats, photos or for that someone special you could even make a matching mini-album. It is also easy to adjust the size if you have a little patience in doing some math. Just keep the scored widths the same on all four sides. Have fun and happy gift giving!

B-

Supplies Used: Hocus Pocus by Pink Paislee, Mitten Weather by Cosmo Cricket, Martha Stewart Scoring Board, Be Creative double sided tape, Black letter stickers are from the Life's Portrait paper crafting kit by Webster's Pages, White Trim from Prima Marketing.

Boo Halloween Banner by Julia Stainton

I'm totally loving banners. They are so much fun to create as you can make them as large as you want or start small and add more pennants as you find the time.

Today's project is a Hallowe'en banner for my home. Each of the pennants is 5"x7" and is created on a Jenni Bowlin Bingo Card. I know it's difficult to get an accurate idea of the size and detail as blog width ends up making the banner photo very small. To counter this, I'll be sharing each pennant individually as each is a unique creation in itself. Each pennant is larger than card front size and was so much fun to create. Please click on the smaller images to bring them to their full size for a better look.

To create the banner, each bingo card is decorated. You could stop at this point and create a mini album or a scrapbook page accent but I've punch a hole in the top corners and strung them together with some hem tape ribbon.

To keep continuity in the banner project I repeated a few elements on each design. I wanted each to be unique but still tie the project together.

• each pennant is created from a coordinating Jenni Bowlin Bingo Card
• the edges of each pennant are highlighted by "inking" them with a Black Adirondack Paint Dabber
• each pennant has some Graphic 45 Halloween in Wonderland accents
• each pennant has die cut leaves that I've sponged with distress ink

Now for each of the pennants I'll show you a closeup for the detail and highlight some of the design elements of each one...

• star is created by die-cutting Craft-a-board with the Classic Star Nestability die and then covering it with Melissa Frances Silver Glass Glitter
• a fun Tim Holtz Keyhole accents one of the o's in Boo
• the bat accent is a Tim Holtz Fragment that has been masked with a bat from the Tim Holtz Seasonal Masks and then painted with a Black Paint Dabber

 

• Tim Holtz Tissue tape crossed over the bingo card resembles crime scene tape
• a little Memo Pin holds a Kiwi Chandelier Crystal
• the Paper Rosette Sizzlets die makes a darling black flower rosette from black cardstock

• add dates or word accents with Tiny Type and Graphic 45 letter stickers
• The black cat is another use of the Tim Holtz Seasonal Masks

• Ellen's new Ellen's Essentials Doiles are so much fun to use as an achor for a group of embellishments and accents
• Add a fun chipboard button to the rossette center for extra dimension

• the fun Halloween ticket stamp is one of many occasions found on the Tim Holtz Odds and Ends stamp set
• frame your stamped image by stamping it onto a large kraft ticket

So there you have it.

Lots of fun techniques and ideas to try in one fun project. You could also rework it for a different occasion such as Christmas, a baby shower, or whatever you wish. You can find lots of fabulous and varied Bingo Cards by Jenni Bowlin here to use as a base.

Supplies: Halloween Bingo Cards & Vintage Halloween Chipboard Buttons by Jenni Bowlin, black cardstock, Jabberwocky patterned paper & Halloween in Wonderland Tags by Graphic 45, twine, Silver Glass Glitter by Melissa Frances, Tiny Attacher , Memo Pin and Market Place Tissue Tape by Tim Holtz for Advantus, Pitch Black Paint Dabber, Jet Black Archival Ink, Crushed Olive Distress Ink, Barn Door Distress Ink & Wild Honey Distress Ink by Ranger, Tattered Leaves die by Sizzix, Orange Halloween Felt by Hero Arts, Medallion Flower by Maya Road, Classic Star Nestability Die by Spellbinders, Tim Holtz Odds and Ends Stamp Set by Stampers Anonymous, Tim Holtz Fragment and Hinge Clip by Advantus, Tim Holtz Seasonal Masks, Vintage Pearl Trinket Pin and Leaf Trinket Pins by Maya Road, Paper Rosette Die by Sizzix, Assorted Doilies by Essential's by Ellen

Thanks for stopping by the CLASSroom and happy creating!

Spooky Silhouettes for Halloween and Spooky Blog Candy

OK - I must admit - they really aren't all that spooky - LOL! In fact I find them quite delightful, but I just had to share more simple and fun uses for the silhouettes I showcased in this month's newsletter article.

Printing the silhouettes on decorative paper adds a completely different look to your silhouette. I love the patterns of the Hocus Pocus 6x6 papers and decided to use them as my background.

Once you have your silhouette prepared these are so very simple to create and change out for the different holiday seasons!The silhouette above is the same silhouette that I used in my Optical Lens Ornament Rub On post.

Double click this link for more Rub On details.

For this framed piece I resized and printed my silhouette on copy paper. Using a light box I was then able to position the silhouette under the Hocus Pocus decorative paper, moving it around to find the best part of the pattern to use as the background.

Using temporary adhesive I adhered the decorative paper to my copy paper and then sent it back through the printer again. Voila - spooky prints appear in my silhouettes!

A few gemstones, together with a spider barette and pony tail holder, and the fabulous Melissa Frances frames make a very personalized set of Halloween prints to display :-D

I hope this inspires you to get creative for the upcoming holidays. You will be seeing me pull these silhouettes out of the frames and reuse the frames for the upcoming Christmas season ;-D

For those of you who do not have Photoshop we are offering a custom digital silhouette rendering so that you can use your own silhouettes in your projects. Visit our store for more information.

Once again I would appreciate your input. I am wondering if you would find it valuable for me to share the steps I use to create a silhoutte in Photoshop. Do you have and use Photoshop? If you do --- are you a beginner, intermediate or advanced user? Do you already know how to make your own silhouette? I am so very happy to provide this information, but do not want to use valuable time to create something that you already know how to do and/or share something that is far more complex than you would ever attempt in the first place - LOL!

Please leave your response in the comments section below before midnight Sunday, October 24th to be entered in our random drawing. By leaving your input you will be entered in to our random drawing which will take place on Monday, October 25th for the following:

• Custom Digital Silhouette Rendering, JPG
• 1 pr. Optical Lenses
• Rub Onz

silhouette: get your own Custom Digital Silhouette Rendering, JPG

paper: Hocus Pocus 6x6

accessories: Melissa Frances Large Chiswick and Large Newstead, Gemstone Spiders and Black Crystals, Temporary Repositionable Adhesive

Doily Flower Tutorial

It isn't even Halloween yet, but that doesn't mean you can't get a head start on preparing for the holiday season. Designing your holiday cards can become overwhelming, but with a few easy techniques you can wow the people on your card list.

The first thing you could do to take a little of the stress out of the designing process is to use some fab products that are ready to go. The Graphic 45 Christmas Past Frames are beautiful, elegant and provide a great value from each sheet of images! There are seven frames on each sheet, and you can make a card from each of them. If you feel the smaller frames aren't a size that you would feel comfortable making a card from, then use them for gift tags for those special boxes.

First start by building your card base, this one is just a touch bigger than the frame that is on it. It was cut from the Hero Arts Layering Paper in Kraft  at 7" wide by 5 1/2" tall. It was then folded in half to make the card base. To make the card top just apply Tea Dye Distress ink to the edges of the frame and the image insert that is inside of the frame. Then adhere the frame to the card first and then adhere the image using 3-D foam adhesive.

 To make the doily flower we start by misting with English Ivy glimmer mist from Tattered Angels a doily from the Essentials by Ellen Small Doilies set.

When it has dried pinch the four sides in together and then carefully pinch into a point.

 When you have it all gathered and pinched, staple with the Tim Holtz Tiny Attacher.

Then carefully open and flatten. Now it is ready to either embellish further or use on your project.

To finish up my doily I punched a couple of circles from some more of The Christmas Past collection from Graphic 45 and then spritzed some Butterscotch Adirondack Dimensional Pearls that had been mixed in a Mini-Mister with some water onto the gorgeous vintage style Melissa Frances Crepe Paper.

This is a fun and easy way to use doilies, and by just changing the color of the mist you can get many different looks that work for almost every crafting occasion.

Easy to make quite a few at once and a really great texture to add to those cards that were made from the frames, easy peasy! A great way to get a head start on those holiday greetings.

B-

October Calendar by Sharon Harnist

 
 
I know October is a third over already, but I'm just now finding time on this school and Columbus Day holiday to finish my October calendar!  So I thought I would share that with you all today.  You may remember when I introduced you to my 2010 calendar for this year, here.  It's a mini-book style, made out of 4-inch square pieces of Ellen's fabulous Craft-A-Board!  You could prep one of these calendar books for next year to give as a gift, leaving space for the recepient to add photos of their own as the year goes along, if you wish!

I started by cutting two pieces of Craft-A-Board 4-inches square and then round the corners with Crop-a-Dile Corner Chomper:

 

Next, I chose papers from Cosmo Cricket's Matilda Mini Deck and covered the Craft-a-Board with them, using a glue stick.  Then I stamped Karen Lockhart's sweet new Basket of Leaves with Memento Rich Cocoa ink onto Copic's new X-Press It Blending Card.  I noticed Ellen has several affordable package options of this fabulous new cardstock available now -- you can find them here!  Your Copic markers will blend wonderfully on this new cardstock and you won't see any feathering of marker color or stamped lines like you might on other cardstocks. 

Here's a quick step-out of the Copic markers I used on the basket image, chosen to match the Matilda papers (click on any photo for a larger view):

 
L - E31 on the basket, YR21 on the basket cross weaves and leaves, pumpkin & apples.  R - E33 & E35 on the basket and fruit stems.

 
L - YR16 on some leaves and pumpkin.  R - YR18 to deepen the pumpking and some leaves.

G82 & G85 on leaves and one apple.

Sorry I didn't get a photo of the last few steps:

R24 on last apple.
E31 & E33 on what I decided would be pods or nuts in the basket and to finish the basket rim, some E37.
YR16 & YR18 on the flowers on each side of the basket.
W1 & W3 to shade under the basket and for the blowing leaf trails.
Gold Atyou Spica Glitter Pen accents everything.

I cut out the image and popped it up on foam tape.  Now, take a look at my finished colored image next to the papers I chose:

 

I love the bright white of the Copic X-Press It Blending Card -- it produces very crisp and vivid colors.  But notice how different it is (bright white) than the ivory of the patterned papers and Neenah Natural White cardstock that I printed my computer-generated calendar on?  Now this may not bother some people, but it bothers the perfectionist in me, LOL!  So what to do?  Here's where your hand-dandy Copic E50 Egg Shell comes to the rescue!

 

I used it to color any of the remaining white areas of the basket image.  In the photo above, I started on the right side of the image, up to where the tip of the marker is pointing -- the left side of the image still remains white, so you can see the difference the Egg Shell marker makes!

And here's a close-up of the finished image -- hopefully you can see the nice sparkle the glitter pen adds (click for a larger view):

 

I used Martha Stewart's Picket Fence Edger Punch and Maple Leaf Punch to punch more Matilda paper for accents on this page.  The leaves were edged with Copic E35, crumpled and added with Mini Glue Dots.

For the right side of my calendar, I cut the Cosmo Cricket Matilda pumpkin background paper a little smaller than the 4-inch Craft-a-Board and colored the edges of the Craft-a-Board with Copic G85 marker.  Next, I die cut my computer-generated calendar with a Spellbinders Labels Four die and sponged the edges with Ranger Antique Linen Distress Ink.  It is popped up on foam tape.  

 

Cosmo Cricket's Tiny Type Brown sticker letters make the 'october' word on top of my calendar.  Using Spellbinders Nested Maple Leaf die, I die cut & embossed green plaid Matilda paper, sanded the edges, and then machine stitched it.  Strands of ribbon make "hinges" to hold the two calendar pieces together like a book!

Thanks for joining us today -- Happy Columbus Day!  ~ Sharon

 
Stamps: Lockhart Basket of Leaves
Paper: Cosmo Cricket Matilda Mini Deck & Tiny Type Brown letter stickers, Copic X-Press It Blending Card
Ink: Memento Rich Cocoa, Ranger Antique Linen Distress Ink
Copic markers: YR21, YR16, YR18, R24, E31, E33, E35, E37, E50, G82, G85, W1; Gold Atyou Spica Glitter Pen
Accessories: Essentials by Ellen Craft-a-Board, Crop-a-Dile Corner Chomper, Spellbinders Labels Four & Nested Maple Leaf die sets, Martha Stewart Picket Fence Edger Punch & Maple Leaf Punch, Sanding Block, Mini Glue Dots

World Card Making Day Challenge Blog Candy Winner

Oh what fun it will be to now take a stroll through the images uploaded to our Challenges! Seeing what each of you has contributed is SO very fun! Thank you to all who participated whether you uploaded photos or not!

And our lucky winner is...

Kathyc on SCS we are thrilled to be sharing the above prize package with you! If you do not receive the message that I sent to you via the SCS website please contact us at customerservice@ellenhutson.com with your snail mail address so that we can get your goodies out to you in time to create for the holiday season ahead!

Once again I would like to thank all of our amazing customers for your support in our little corner of World Card Making Day. We hope that you have had as much fun as we have and that you know how much we appreciate you, your thoughtful and encouraging notes and comments and your participation here in the CLASSroom. Have a wonderful weekend!

Optical Lens Halloween Ornaments

Can you tell I have been having waaay too much fun here at work lately? Life is settling into a more regular (and happy) routine which allows me to do what it is that I LOVE - create and share :-D

The optical lenses from 7 Gypsies are so wicked cool and I have many ideas floating through my brain since first seeing them in July. The first to surface is the use of these as "Halloween ornaments." Come Christmas time I have another whole new set of ideas, yep my brain is exploding and I can hardly wait to share those - ha! ha!

We were seriously laughing today because it took longer for me to take pictures of the finished designs than it did to create them! Yes, the glare on the lens makes these hard to photograph, but I just had to go outside where these orangey-red berries were. The wind was blowing, the sun was placing dappled shadows on my lenses, but I was determined... and I think I won out :-D

Begin by applying the design adhesive to the lens surface by using the spatula end of the Rub-on tool.

Mix together black ultrafine glitter and black flock. Apply and burnish with finger. Remove excess glitter and flock with a soft cloth.

So pretty!

Add additional dimension to your piece by first applying a rub-on. Then flip over your lens and apply the design adhesive crow, flock and glitter.

TIP: Cut the rubbing down to size before applying. If it is too large and you just try to pull it apart you will pull the rubbing from your surface. Guess how I know this... just look at the top edge and you will see :-(

You must admit that these are rather cool looking! Hang as a window ornament, put branches and berries in a vase and hang these or put it on a chain and wear it as a necklace. Yes, you could even use it on one of your paper craft projects - LOL!

Yes, I am having a barrel of fun! Thank you for stopping in and I hope that I have been able to bring a smile to your day!

accessories: 7 Gypsies Optical Lens, 7 Gypsies Chain and Time Rubbings, Memory Box Fright Night Design Adhesives, Doodlebug Flock (Black), Black Ultrafine Glitter RItz, Basic Grey Rub-on Roller

Hocus Pocus Test Tube Treat Holder

I keep seeing these test tubes arrive and depart here in the warehouse and have wanted to create using them for over a year! EEK!

How to present these has been part of my fascination... I think. Test tube holders are either really expensive, drab looking and/or way too large or small. Our lunch time conversation yesterday turned to the many different ways to hold these test tubes. The template that I have designed is based on the fabulous advice of all the girls here at work. Have I told you how lucky I am to have such fabulous women to work with?!! So I decided to create a template for all those of you who purchase these from us :-D Simply download and use the dimensions attached below. As well, we will be adding this file to the description of the test tubes in the store so that you can easily find it in the future.

You are going to hear me raving about Craft-a-board again today - LOL! Two days ago I created the Halloween treat box base using it. I absolutely love how this product is sturdy enough to really hold it's shape for making a wide assortment of projects. I shared how you can cut part way through using the Zutter Kutter. WELL...  guess what!!! Most of you don't have Zutter Kutter's BUT you do have an Xacto Knife and steel edge ruler :-D

It dawned on me that if I used my Fiskar's tool together with the Tim Holtz ruler I may have discovered a solution for the others to be able to create the sturdy boxes I have been utilizing. Oh the feeling of jubilation when it worked like a charm! As you can see I held my ruler firmly in place and then gently, yet firmly cut through the first layer of the Craft-a-board surface.

This picture shows the reason I am so very excited about this. By cutting through the top layer only you can create crisp, clean folds!!!

If you find that you have cut too deep you can always use adhesive or tissue tape to reinforce your fold lines, but I did not have to do that at all on this project. In fact it worked better than the Zutter Kutter :-D

This photo shows my test tube holder base with all lines, what I am going to call "deep scored" (the top layer of the Craft-a-board being cut through and the bottom layer remaining intact.)

There are many ways to color the Craft-a-board. One of the quickest and easiest is to use an ink blending tool and dye inks. I love the color palette of the Distress Inks and so they are frequently my first go-to-ink for anything involving the blending tool. I inked the edges of the Craft-a-board and then the portions of the holder that were not going to be covered with decorative paper.

For more ways to use Craft-a-board simply click on the category link on simple dreams, In Touch and here in the CLASSroom.

Another product I cannot remember ever using before is rub-ons :-O Yes, the girl who likes to try everything hasn't tried rub-ons! As we have continued to explore and expand the lines that we carry in the store these have puzzled me.

Decorating a rounded surface can be somewhat tricky for those of us who are stampy stampers and so I stepped off the edge, so to speak, and broke open my first package of "Press Ons."

Sitting at my table puzzling over how I would hold it in place without moving it Cathy came to my rescue. I used basic removable office tape to hold it in place as I worked :-D

Using the Basic Grey Rub-on Roller I carefully applied my first Press-On. Success! I am hooked! Those optical lenses are now calling my name and I think I must find a way to make a few "dangly" Halloween decorations :-D

The next piece to the mental puzzle of creating the perfect test tube holder was creating the hole that would hold the tubes firmly in place. My circle was a little to large and then it dawned on me. I have seen these funky pinked edges on store packaging. I trace the location of my circle on to my decorative paper as shown above, making certain that it would be positioned in just the right spot.

Look at how perfect the Cosmos flower fits this circle! It was meant to be.

Another rub-on was added to the cork and a gemstone to add just that little bit of bling.

A little more bling with a strip of adhesive and Glitter Ritz, as well as the perfect little amber circle bling and now I have a very fun little vessel and holder in which to present my gift. Purple Nerds to the rescue momentarily for this picture, but soon I will have this filled with some crafting goodies to gift to someone very special.

We hope that you enjoy this little treat holder. Think of all the possibilities!!! You could stamp the decorative paper, add a focal image, drop a tag from it and so much more!!! Add an inch or two to the overall width, cut in additional holes, and you can easily hold two or three test tubes. I would also like to encourage you once again to give Craft-a-board a try. It has SO many uses --- I will continue to do my best to share the many ideas I have to help you bring a higher level of quality to the items you create. Thank you for joining me here in the CLASSroom - now go and get creative!

template: Download Test Tube Favor Stand Template

paper: Pink Paislee Hocus Pocus 6x6 Paper Pad

ink: Dusty Concord Distress Ink Pad

accessories: Martha Stewart Test Tube Favors, Craft-a-board, Fiskars Fingertip Knife, Tim Holtz Ruler, Pink Paislee Hocus Pocus Press-ons, Basic Grey Rub-on Roller, Copper Circle Rhinestone Borders, 1/4" Be Creative Tape, Apricot Glitter Ritz, Cosmos Flower Punch

Owl-o-ween Trick or Treat Pencil Box

I LOVE the days that our customers stop in to pick up their will call orders and they bring along projects they are working on. Ann, thank you so much for sharing your adorable treat box!!!

Nothing could be more fun than this little creation!

Ann is making these for an entire class - I know they will absolutely love this treat!

Well... I couldn't resist giving this a whirl. I pulled out a rather boring pencil box to get measurements to design this template. When I am back at work tomorrow I will measure my box and add the dimensions here. Then using Craft-a-board and my Zutter Cutter I was able to quickly design the base for this box.

Craft-a-board is an inexpensive, fantastic alternative to chipboard!

The Zutter Kutter has a very cool feature which allows you to cut part way through thicker materials. To cut through the Craft-a-board I use the regular setting. To cut a deeper score line in the Craft-a-board I set the dial to "3". This creates a cut which allows you to easily create beautiful boxes!

Then using Distress Inks and an Ink Blending Tool I sponged the surface to coordinate with the Hallowe'en in Wonderland spider web paper.

Above are the Copic colors I used to color the oh, so cute Tufted Owl.

Resisting opening the latest sketchy tree die from Tim Holtz was futile - it was just too perfect. Cutting the tree and then wrapping it around the box to position the owl within the harvest moon... well - I just had to do it :-D

A little added sparkle (Rock Candy and Wild Honey Distress Stickles), along with Black Enamel Accents on the eyes adds dimension for the finishing touch.

Ann, thank you once again for inspiring me and providing THE most fabulous of ideas!

stamps: Memory Box Tufted Owl, Hero Arts ClearDesign Happy Halloween

paper: Graphic 45 Hallowe'en in Wonderland 8x8 pad, Neenah Natural White, X-Press Blending Card

ink: Archival Jet Black, Distress Ink Pads - Weathered Wood, Faded Jeans, Scattered Straw, Wild Honey

accessories: Craft-a-Board, Nostalgic Tissue Tape, Black Enamel Accents, Rock Candy and Wild Honey Distress Stickles, Tim Holtz Branch Tree Bigz Die

World Card Making Day Blog Candy Winners

Thank you all for joining in the fun this weekend!!! Remember that you have until Wednesday to participate in our Grand Prize Blog Candy Challenges - pull out your supplies and do a little creating :-D

Following are our lucky winners:

World Card Making Day Color INspiration Challenge by Ellen (EHWCMD1)

 

 

Alyce said:

I tend do use shades of purple with moss green. But now that fall is here, I like using golds, rusts and browns.

 

 

World Card Making Day Sketch Challenge by Julia Stainton (EHWCMD2)

 Donna C said:

i LOVE sketch challenges and find I am looking for more and more of them for my card making ..... it gives me a starting point that I can embellish upon !

 

 

World Card Making Day Trend Watch Challenge - Pleats Aren't Just for Lampshades and Curtains by Becky Olsen (EHWCMD3)

Carolyn Gargus said:

I think right now, I'm liking making my own flowers and embellishments. The pleats are great, though! I will give them a try! Thanks for the chance to win!

 

 

World Card Making Day Glitz Challenge by Sharon Harnist (EHWCMD4)

SmilynStef said:

I've never been a big glitter fan ... to messy ... but this technique looks fantastic. I usually go with Glimmer Mists or Stickles.

 

 

World Card Making Day Holiday Challenge by Lisa Strahl (EHWCMD5)

Mary Harris said:

Oh what a beautiful card!! I love what you did with this stamp (I have this stamp and LOVE it) But I think I am going to try some of your techniques :) I have to start making my cards like real soon. I always seem to wait till I feel rushed. Not this year!!

World Card Making Day Inchie Challenge by Cindy Lyles (EHWCMD6)

syeda said:

No,I don't own an electronic cutter or an embossing machine yet. Maybe in the future. Hopfully! I love your altered project. Loving Tim Holtz embellishments. Thank you for the awesome giveaway.

 

If you are amongst the winners and you haven't heard from us by tomorrow afternoon please email us at customerservice@ellenhutson.com. Thank you again to all who joined us for World Card Making Day!

World Card Making Day Inchie Challenge by Cindy Lyles (EHWCMD6)

We're creating texture Inchies today - if you have never tried creating an Inchie how about trying one today!?!

Steampunk was my operative mode of thought when creating today's altered notebook project, featuring....textured Inchies!

To create the textured Inchies for this project, a Sizzix Embossing Folder was used, and two, white Inchie + Squares (these are 1.5 inches square) were sandwiched and run through a die cut machine.  This produced a wonderful and incredible impression on the Alpharag Artcare matboard.  One could run several Inchies through an embossing folder at a time to keep on hand, and use whenever you need a bit of texture in one of your projects; just add Distress inks to suit your project colors, as was done below.

Next, Distress Inks in Wild Honey, Crushed Olive and Antique Linen were applied using an ink blending tool, to one embossed Inchie + Square, and Aged Mahogany and Antique Linen to the other.  The recesses created by the embossing folder are nicely emphasized with the addition of these wonderful Distress inks.

The rosette was created using Graphic 45 Society Page and one of Sizzix's newest dies, the Paper Rosette - it allows one to create a 2-1/2 inch diameter paper rosette with incredible speed!

I opted to create a covered notebook for these embellishments - all from Tim Holtz's Idea-ology line - here's a close-up:

The covered notebook base uses Graphic 45 Pen in Hand.  Black cardstock is Memory Box Licorice.

Here's a photo of the notebook inside.  Finished dimensions (closed) are 5 inches by 8 inches. 

Thank you for visiting the CLASSroom on World Card Making Day, and hope you have a great time participating in the CLASSroom challenges today!

breakout of Tim's hardware: Game Spinners, Hitch Fasteners, Philosophy Tags, Sprocket Gears, Swivel Clasps, Washers, Timepieces.

INCHIE CHALLENGE

For our Inchie Challenge simply create any project (card, notebook, scrapbook page, and so forth) using an Inchie or Inchies that you've added texture to!

Once you have completed this challenge be certain to post a comment on this post, as well as a link to your project, in our WCMD Challenge Blog Candy post!

BLOG CANDY

Thank you for stopping by our corner of WCMD today! After you have finished drooling on your keyboard be certain to leave a comment to be entered in a random drawing for the delicious goodies shown below. Do you own an electronic cutter and if so, which one?

All comments must be made by 11:59 Pacific Time on Sunday, October 2nd to be eligible.

World Card Making Day Holiday Challenge by Lisa Strahl (EHWCMD5)

World Card Making Day is one of the most wonderful days of the year, don't you agree?

I hope to inspire you to get a Christmas card made today with this challenge and WONDERFUL blog candy!!

My design features the Lockhart stamp called Holiday Window colored with Copic Markers and Spica Glitter Pens.

Design Tips: 

-Fussy cut out the window, score a line between the shutter and edge of the window and use foam squares to pop them up. 

-Apply Glossy Accents to the bow, the candles and the word Joy. 

-Use a color around the outside of an image when you want to keep it white such as the candles.

-Use an embossing stylus on the backside of the image to give dimension to the curtains.

Stamps: Holiday Window (Lockhart Stamp Co.)

Paper: Holly Berry, Dill and Water cardstock (Memory Box), Neenah Class Crest White

Ink: Pitch Black Adirondack Ink (Ranger), Copic Markers in C1, T1, YG03, G28, BG11, BG13, R20, R29, E31, E47 and 0 Colorless Blender, Spica Glitter Pens in Lemon and Red

Accessories: Glossy Accents, embossing stylus set

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HOLIDAY CARD CHALLENGE

We hope that this challenge helps give you a jump start on your holiday cards :-D Create a card to use this upcoming holiday season!

Once you have completed this challenge be certain to post a comment as well as link to your project, in our WCMD Challenge Blog Candy post! Please be certain to link directly to each project when uploading your link :-D

BLOG CANDY

Be certain to leave a comment below to be entered in a random drawing for the following delicious goodies. When do you start creating your holiday cards and how many cards do you typically make?

All comments must be made by 11:59pm Pacific Time on Sunday, October 3rd to be eligible.

World Card Making Day Glitz Challenge by Sharon Harnist (EHWCMD4)

GLITZ CHALLENGE

It's time to get sparkly! I've fallen in love with all the gorgeous colors of Glitter Ritz glitters Ellen carries and wanted to challenge YOU to get sparkly!  Create a project that shimmers and shines in some way, by using your favorite "glitzy" product!  Here's my sample:

 

My card uses a piece of 5.50" x 4.75" Webster's Pages-Hello Beautiful Journaling Card.  I chose this paper because it has quite a few of Ellen's Color Trend challenge colors for today in it!  I mounted a portion of the journaling card onto a Memory Box Crimson notecard.  Then I made a frame by die cutting a piece of Be Creative 8.5" x 11" sheet adhesive with Spellbinders Labels Six die set:

 

I cut another frame from cardstock and adhered the Be Creative frame to that, for stability.  Then I removed the front adhesive liner and did the Burnished Velvet technique by covering the adhesive with Glitter Ritz Opaque Micro Fine Glitter in Ice Blue and rubbing/pressing the glitter into the tape ... what a beautiful look and a quick and easy sparkly frame!

 

Next, I stamped the Hero Arts Create Your Own Journey sentiment with Ranger Adirondack Cranberry dye ink onto Neenah Natural White cardstock, die cut it with the Labels Six die and sponged the edges with Ranger Antique Linen Distress ink.  I topped the sentiment with my glitter frame, popped up on foam tape.  A Webster's chocolate Bloomer finishes my card.  ~ Sharon

 
Stamps: Hero Arts ClearDesign-Life is Not Perfect
Paper: Webster's Pages Journaling Cards-Hello Beautiful Journaling Cards, Memory Box Crimson notecard
Ink: Ranger Adirondack Cranberry dye ink & Antique Linen Distress ink
Accessories: Spellbinders Labels Thirteen, Glitter Ritz Opaque Micro Fine Glitter-Ice Blue, Be Creative 8.5" x 11" sheet adhesive & 5mm tape, Webster's lace trim & Webster's chocolate Bloomer

Once you have completed this challenge be certain to post a comment as well as link to your project, in our WCMD Challenge Blog Candy post! Please be certain to link directly to each project when uploading your link :-D

BLOG CANDY

Do you like sparkle and if so what is your favorite way to make your project shine? Be certain to leave your answer in the comments section below to be entered in a random drawing for the following delicious goodies.

All comments must be made by 11:59pm Pacific Time on Sunday, October 3rd to be eligible.

World Card Making Day Trend Watch Challenge - Pleats Aren't Just for Lampshades and Curtains by Becky Olsen (EHWCMD3)

Welcome to a special World Card Making Day Trend Watch post!

We are going to be looking at how pleats are a hot trend and how much fun, beauty and texture they can add to your projects.

You probably see pleats like these everyday...

or these. Elegant, simple but not terribly exciting or inspiring, yet. I am hoping that after you are done reading this post you will look at pleats with a whole new respect and find inspiration in some new places that you might not have looked at before.

Let's start with the pleats on this delicious pillow! I love how it looks like a flower, but the pleats add a little more edge to the texture.

I thought it would be fun to do a little education on the different types of pleats that you might see on a skirt. These are classic looks and were something I could likely have found in my grandmother's closet, not the type of inspiration we might be looking for in a "trend watch" post.

But how the pleats were used on this dress that I found at Nordstroms is hip, beautiful and classic all in one fantastic silhouette.

Along those same horizontally pleated lines is this adorable top that is from Nordstroms as well. So cute!!

And how do you accessorize using this fresh trend? How about this hot handbag that uses pleats to form the shape of a chevron? So cool!

Or this gorgeous handbag that puts pleats back to the vertical, great texture!

These shoes have a bit of the horizontal and down the front it is stitched to create that chevron look again...

Hmm, we might have a little sub trend going on in our trend!

And this headband with pleats also from Nordstroms is stunning. It is so simply put together, has the classic feel of pleats but the soft satin fabrication gives it a softness and ease that makes it appropriate for most any outfit. That makes it a WOW in my book!

I made a couple of projects that were inspired by this trend, first I used products that were "pre-pleated" for time saving convenience. The first is the Twill Ribbon pleats from the Pink Paislee "Queen Bee" collection. The pleated flower is from the Prima "Madrigal Blossom" set.

These are on the cover of a notebook that I made for my Copic coloring practice sheets.

For an easy to make pleat I used the Tim Holtz "Marketplace Tissue Tape". Just fold over a few times and then adhere to your project.

For this card I cut the strip in half when I was done folding it and had the top pleats going toward the left and the bottom pleats to the right. The paper is from the new "Hocus Pocus" collection from Pink Paislee and that cool trim is from Basic Grey's ribbon doilies in the "Basic Krafts" collection.

It has been fun looking at the hot trend of pleats, thanks for taking the journey with me, and I want to challenge you to find a way to play with pleats in one of your projects. Pleats are hip, modern and now you can start looking at curtains and lampshades with a whole new perspective  ;o)

B-

TREND CHALLENGE

It's time to get your trend on - so put some pleats on your project :-D Pleat up some paper, ribbon, tissue tape or... simply get trendy.

Once you have completed this challenge be certain to post a comment, as well as link to your project, in our WCMD Challenge Blog Candy post! Please be certain to link directly to each project when uploading your link :-D

BLOG CANDY

What is your current favorite trend? In the comments section below be certain to leave your answer to be entered in a random drawing for the delicious goodies shown.

All comments must be made by 11:59pm Pacific Time on Sunday, October 3rd to be eligible.

World Card Making Day Sketch Challenge by Julia Stainton (EHWCMD2)

It's World Cardmaking Day and what a wonderful day to celebrate. Cards are always special projects to create as they bring joy to both the creator and the receiver. I love creating cards as they are the perfect size canvas to try out new techniques and ideas and they fit so well into our busy lives. You can create a five minute card or a 50 minute card depending on your mood and schedule.

Cards are wonderful ways to staying in touch with those special people in our lives. In this busy whirlwind we call life, cards are a very special way to show we care. While I love technology, my cell phone, internet and e-mail, getting a card in the mail, especially a handmade one is a wonderful thing.

Here in the CLASSroom today we've put together a fun group of challenges for you to celebrate World Cardmaking Day with us. I hope you'll play along. Ellen has some fabulous goodies to share!

I always love creating for a sketch challenge and I hope you do as well. This sketch is very versatile so enjoy playing along. Create whatever design you wish based on this sketch. Feel free to flip it or rotate it if the inspiration strikes.

Here's the sample I created from the above sketch. It's a shabby style design with lots of misting and sanding and beautiful new product from Ellen Hutson LLC.

Here's a better look at the details. The white Prima flower has been spritzed with Glimmer Mist for a hit of color. The whole design is misted as well and the brown Coffee Shop Glimmer Mist was flicked over the surface for a distressed look.

I adore pleats and texture and the 7 Gypsies Printed Paper Tape makes it so easy to get a darling pleated layer. The blue cardstock is from Memory Box and I love how sanding the edges gives you a nice white distressed edge.

I have an addiction to the Cosmo Cricket Tiny Type letters. It's wonderful to be able to create any sentiment you wish with them. Most often I line them  up along the bottom of the stickers but for this design thought it would be fun to align the top edges and stitch them.

Supplies: Bayou Cardstock by Memory Box, Conservatory 8x8 paper pad by 7 Gypsies, Avignon Printed Paper Tape by 7 Gypsies, Cynthia lace by Prima, flower by Prima, Black Tiny Type by Cosmo Cricket, Peacock & Coffee Shop Glimmer Mist by Tattered Angels, Tiny Attacher and Sanding Block by Advantus, sewing machine, Kraft Doilies and Leaf Trinket Pins and Green Resin Blossoms by Maya Road, twine

Thanks for celebrating World Cardmaking Day with us!

Happy creating!

SKETCH CHALLENGE

Come join in the fun and create a card using the fabulous sketch Julia provided above!

Once you have completed this challenge be certain to post a comment, as well as link to your project, in our WCMD Challenge Blog Candy post! Please be certain to link directly to each project when uploading your link :-D

BLOG CANDY

It is "challenge day" today --- so we would like to hear from you for future reference. What is your favorite type of challenge? Be certain to leave your answer in the comments section below to be entered in a random drawing for the delicious goodies shown.

All comments must be made by 11:59pm Pacific Time on Sunday, October 3rd to be eligible.

World Card Making Day Color INspiration Challenge by Ellen (EHWCMD1)

We would like to welcome you to our corner of World Card Making Day with our first challenge and blog candy opportunity!

Color trends and color forecasting have always been a passion of mine. As an interior designer we studied where trends started and how the color marketing group works to create a color plan, years in advance.

My favorite type of TV shows are those that showcase design in some fashion (well... that and the Food Network - LOL!) Project Runway is one of my favorites and so in searching over the internet to find pictures that shared the fall color trends I found this fabulous Pantone picture showing fashion color trends for this Fall and Winter. My heart gives a happy leap everytime I look at it :-D

I went back to the warehouse to look through the papers we currently have, and needless to say, it was no easy task picking which one of the many wonderful papers fell within these trendy colors. I ended up utilizing the newest Memory Box Tinsel collection because I knew I wanted to use the latest Lockhart Sweet Treats for this month's thank you note.

The scale, color and proportion coordinated perfectly!

So for our Color INspiration challenge I tweaked the colors slightly and created the above palette for you to select from.

COLOR CHALLENGE

Use the color inspiration above to create your card or project!

Once you have completed this challenge be certain to post a comment as well as link to your project, in our WCMD Challenge Blog Candy post! Please be certain to link directly to each project when uploading your link :-D

BLOG CANDY

Thank you for stopping by our corner of World Card Making Day today! Be certain to leave your answer to the following question to be entered in a random drawing for the delicious goodies shown below. What is your current favorite color combination?

All comments must be made by 11:59pm Pacific Time on Sunday, October 3rd to be eligible.

World Card Making Day "Challenge Blog Candy"

It is with great excitement that we share our projects and challenges throughout the day on Saturday, October 2nd World Card Making Day. We would LOVE to have you play along with us!

We will be keeping this post at the top of the CLASSroom so be certain to scroll down for the fun challenges we have in store for you!

Throughout the day tomorrow, Saturday, October 2nd, starting at 8:00am PDT we will be sharing a new challenge every hour until we have posted all six challenges! So be certain to return throughout the day to see what is new, leave a comment for each designer and enter to win some blog candy! Your comment on each challenge post will automatically enter you in a drawing for the goodies that we are giving away.

Please scroll down through the posts that include a challenge number next to them - example EHCWCMD1 through EHWCMD6. There will be six different challenges for you to participate in. To participate in this Blog Candy drawing all you need to do is create a project for one of these challenges!

Following are some simple instructions sharing how you can participate in our Grand Prize Challenge Blog Candy:

1. Create a project for one challenge, several challenges, or participate in all of them. It is completely up to you how many challenges you would like to create for. You are welcome to create a total of six projects and enter each one as a new entry.
2. Please enter only one project for each challenge. Each project can only be used for one challenge category. For example please do not combine the color challenge with the sketch challenge and then enter that same project twice.
3. Share the projects that you create on your blog, or in a forum gallery such as Splitcoaststampers or the World Card Making Day gallery.
4. Once you have your project uploaded come back and share a link to your project at the end of this post.
5. Deadline for entering in our "Challenge Blog Candy" is Wednesday, October 6th at 11:59pm. We would like for you to have additional time to create, so that you can take advantage of as many challenges as possible.
6. We will use a random number generator to select our winner on Thursday, October 7th, 2010.

So be certain to return tomorrow morning at 8:00am for our very first challenge!