the CLASSroom

Lockhart Neon Thanks by Sharon Harnist

Hello and happy weekend once again! Today I have a brand new Lockhart stamp image to share. You'll want to be sure and check out all of the sweet images in Karen's new 2013 Spring & Summer release, here.

(Click on any photo for a larger view)

Aren't these Gift of Flowers bright and cheery?!!  Here's Karen's colored image you'll see in the store -- I altered the image a bit, by cutting off the the "Thanks" flower stake and using it on the tab of the file folder:

 

I chose my color palette specifically to coordinate with the fun Hero Arts Neon Pink ink I used on the Hero Arts ClearDesign-Glow Girl greeting inside the adorable mini Naked ATC Manila Folder:

Isn't that greeting fun?!! I found my Copic RV06 was a close match to the neon pink ink pad, so I used it to color some of the flowers in these sweet potted plants:

The flowers were stamped with Memento Tuxedo Black ink onto X-Press It Blending Card and here are the rest of the Copic Sketch markers I used, along with Copic Atyou Spica Glitter Pens (Orange, Lemon, Melon & Pink) to color the flowers. I find the glitter pens are great for coloring in small images like these -- especially tiny stems and the planter's wrought iron:

After coloring the flowers, I used Paper Smooches wonderful Wise Dies Frame-Duo Die 2 to die cut some fabulous Chalkstock paper I recently discovered in the store . . . the texture is silky amazing and accepts the Hero Hues Snow Chalk Ink I used around the edges for a faux chalkboard look very well. I placed the frame over the colored flowers, then adhered the frame to the darling ATC-sized mini file folder. (This would make a great ATC, wouldn't it?).

To keep the folder closed until the recepient is ready to view the contents, I used a cute Mini White Clothespin. Copic Foam Tape was used on the back of the folder to adhere it to the card front, which allows for easy removal and replacing of the clothespin.

The pretty coordinating papers I used are from My Mind's Eye 6x6 The Sweetest Thing-Honey pad, on a Memory Box Raspberry notecard.  I hope you have a bright and cheerful weekend!

~ Sharon

{Supplies}

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Lawn Fawn - One Die Three Ways by Nina Yang

**Please note - we have two posts to share with you today! Be certain to scroll down and leave a comment for Julia as well! Thank you!

As we stood in the Lawn Fawn booth this past CHA admiring the cards, one in particular popped out at Julie and I (well lots of cards popped, but this one... well...) We squealed with delight at the genius behind the card. As good fortune would have it the creator of that fabulous little card walked into the booth moments later and we were introduced to Nina Yang. My goodness but the lady is clever and talented, so to have her joining us and sharing her talents with us here in the CLASSroom today is so much fun!

Nina is author to a marvelous blog called Waffleflower. It is filled with a myriad of treasures as Nina designs for Hampton Arts, Neat & Tangled, Paper Smooches Sparks and Runway Inspired Challenges! You will definitely enjoy the inspiration she shares there. I would appreciate if you would head over to Nina's blog now and help us thank her for sharing her talents with us here in the CLASSroom today. Please leave a comment on her post about being a guest here. As our way of thanking you for taking the time to do so you will have a chance to win some of the new products she used to create this post! You know you are in the right place if you see the following picture.

Thank you Nina for inspiring us on so many levels - your projects are simply fabulous! -Ellen

Just a side note - the Lawn Fawn CHA release is scheduled to arrive at our warehouse February 20th or 21st. Simply click the notify box and fill it in if you would like to receive an email when the product arrives.

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Hello there! I’m very excited to be joining Ellen Hutson in the CLASSroom today to share some fun ways to use dies.

One of my favorite CHA Winter 2013 releases is the A Birdie Told Me die set by Lawn Fawn. What I like most about this set is the cute hand drawn twist to the speech bubble trend. I am showcasing the mini circle bubble today.

First up, the birdie hello card.

 
The speech bubble is designed to come out from the right but we need it to come out from the left for the bird. For stamps, we can do mirror stamping to get it right; for a die, we just need to die cut it on the back of the paper and flip it! Then diecut the heart from the bubble to create a negative image.

Have you noticed that I used the thought bubble die from the same set to create my tree? The bird die makes it easy to create a a-bird-in-the-tree scene.

Here is a close-up. I used lots of foam adhesive to add dimension. I used cardstock but it should be fun to mix and match your patterned paper for a different look.

On the first card, we used two different dies to create the speech bubble. On the second card, We are going to use the negative piece after die cutting a bunch of bubbles to be the base and raise the heart in the middle.

Play with the patterned paper combination and trace the speech bubbles down with a pencil.

No need to be perfect when cutting the bubbles out. We will need the extra paper to mount them with foam adhesives.

I usually add foam dots on the back of my front piece. This way it is sure that they will not show up through the windows. Don’t forget to remove the pencil lines before you mount the patterned paper pieces to the back.

The sentiments were stamped on some scrap and cut out. This is the fun part of speech bubbles and frames – mix and match your sentiment stamps!

The sentiments were adhered to card with some foam adhesive as well. Play with the positions until you are satisfied.

Now, I am very excited to introduce the third way to use the die – make a 3D flower with it!

The little tail on the speech bubble is just perfect for making a flower like this. I first heat embossed the cardstock with the triangle stamp to give some texture to my flower but you can also use patterned paper instead.

Diecut 6 bubbles from the paper and poke a hole in each of them as shown. No need to be perfect but be careful not to tear the paper.

Start with 3 petals with a brad and secure; add foam adhesive to the other 3 petals and adhere them to the back of the first three. Arrange them to your liking.

There is one more tip I would like to add. The white embossed letters are hard to show up on bright yellow cardstock. I used the heat emboss resist technique to give it a shadow so it can stand out from the background. Just make sure that you use a water-based ink for this technique.

The frame die I used is a new CHA release by Paper Smooches. It is my absolutely favorite frame of all time. Have you noticed that it is very similar to the one in the PS logo? Timeless! I have another 1 die 3 way post using the Duo Die 2 on my blog.

That’s it for today! I hope that you are inspired to play more with your dies.

Thank Ellen and Kelly for going through all the trouble to get the new products to me so quickly. Patterned paper I used is from Daphne’s Closet 6x6 pad by Lawn Fawn. Ellen handpicked the cardstocks that go very well with the paper. Check out the supply list below for details.

Lawn Cuts Dies, A Birdie Told Me	Lawn Fawn Clear Stamps, A Birdie Told Me	Paper Smooches Wise Dies Frame Die, Duo Die 1	Lawn Fawn Clear Stamps, Sharp Backdrops
Lawn Fawn Clear Stamps, Hello Friend	Lawn Fawn Clear Stamps, Love 'n Breakfast	Lawn Fawn Clear Stamps, Sophie's Sentiments	Lawn Fawn Clear Stamps, Critters Down Under
Lawn Fawn Petite Paper Pack, Daphne's Closet	A Cardstock, Neenah Classic Crest Solar White, 25 pack	Hero Arts, Layering Paper, Punch	Memory Box Cardstock, Parsley
Cardstock, Juniper	Memory Box Cardstock, Sunflower	Memory Box Cardstock, Sugar Plum	Memento Ink Pad, Tuxedo Black
Memento Ink Pad, Toffee Crunch	Stampendous Embossing Powder, .92 oz Detail White	Lawn Fawn Hemp Cord, Single Spool Peppermint	Essentials by Ellen: Sequins, Iridescent Daffodil
Crop-a-Dile Corner Chomper Tool	Paper Trimmer, Tonic Guillotine 8 1/2"	Retractable Craft Pick	Non-stick Micro Serrated Scissors

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I Do Wedding Card by Julia Stainton

It's a lovely time of year for a white wedding. We have a fresh dusting of snow and it's that special season when we celebrate love and the special people in our lives.It seems very appropriate that tomorrow we are attending what is a very special wedding in our family. My oldest son and his lovely fiancee tie the knot and I couldn't be more excited.

(image credit: Vincent Kember)

One of James and Shannon's beautiful engagement photos inspired this design. This is my favourite photo of them and I really wanted to work it into the card.

Truth be told, this card I designed wasn't the one I had planned in my head. Designing can be like that and projects can take on a mind of their own. When that happens, you might as well just go with the creative flow. While this card isn't the over-the-top floral and embellisment-laden design I had wanted to create, simple and elegant with the focus on the couple themselves is perfect for James and Shannon.

  To start off this design, I used one of my favourite photo techniques that is so easy to do and adds wonderful texture and interest. The Claudine Hellmuth Sticky Back Canvas is perfect for so many different art and mixed media techniques but it is also perfect for clean and simple design as well. Did you know that you can run these sheets right through your printer? Oh the possibilities! No specific settings needed, just put the sheet into your printer and print your photo. I love the black and white look but colour works great as well.

Once my photo was printed, I trimmed it down,removed the backing and adhered it to a piece of Craft-a-Board, a great chipboard-type product.

Next I wanted to die cut the image but as the Styled Labels die was on a angle, it was difficult to line up. I certainly didn't want to cut off the wrong part of the photo. A piece of vellum to the rescue. I die cut the vellum out with the die and then placed it over the image where I wanted it. Because you can see through vellum, it made it easy. Then I lined up the die over where the vellum lay and ran the whole thing through my Sizzix Big Shot.

I love how clean, crisp and pretty the die cut turned out.

Which in turn made it very difficult to add too much to the design. Everything seemed to take away from it. And so...

...the best solution was to keep it simple.

• a very simple sentiment using white canvas letter stickers
• a simple white on white embossed dot background
• a simple trinket pin and charm to dress it up

To finish the inside, I turned to a simple Now and Forever stamped sentiment. The  two little canvas chipboard hearts were created with more sticky-back canvas and Craft-a-Board to coordinate with the front.

 Wishing you a lovely and creative weekend! Thanks for stopping by the CLASSroom!

Supplies:

 

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Favorite Finds from CHA Winter 2013 - Video

Hi, everybody!

In lieu of a Hello Monday video, we're sharing some of the things we found at the CHA Winter 2013 show!  

CHA is the Craft & Hobby Association Trade Show that occurs every winter, typically down in Anaheim, CA. The show is open to the trade only (retailers, manufacturers, and other industry related businesses) and showcases products and lines that manufacturers are debuting for the new year.

Ellen and I arrived a day ahead of the show, and took classes to learn more about some of the exciting new products being released, such as the new Ranger Distress Paints!  This water based paint is very unique and features some very interesting properties, unlike any other paint we've ever worked with before! Watch the video to see and hear more about these paints and some of the other items we were *monkey clapping* over! 

You can enjoy the video here, or on YouTube!

Thanks for joining us, and we hope you enjoyed getting a glimpse of some of the coming new products!  Keep your eye on the "Coming soon from CHA Winter 2013" category to see what will be arriving soon!

Rolled Roses by Sharon Harnist

Good morning and welcome to the CLASSroom on a crisp Fall day! I recently stocked up on some beautiful new colors of WoolFelt Ellen now has in the store and wanted to share with you how thrilled I was to find how wonderfully it cuts with low profile dies! These are 20%-35% wool blends and the colors are fabulous!  Here's a card and tutorial I put together for you, on how easy it is to roll your own roses:

So let's get started on those roses!  First, die cut the colors you want to use.  Here, I used My Favorite Things Large Royal Rose and these felt colors (top to bottom, left to right): Fuchsia, Baby Blue, Shady Grove and Red:

TIP:
Have threaded needle or your adhesive ready, before you start rollling!

1. Use Locking Hemostat Pliers to grasp the outer petal, facing the pliers inward towards the flat cut edge of flower.

2. Holding pliers with dominant hand, slowly roll petal fairly tightly against the index finger of other hand:

The tighter you roll, the smaller your flower will be; looser roll = larger flower.

3. Once you get to the large round "center" of the flower, this will become the base of your flower: 

4. To secure the flower, you can either put glue on the center and then hold the flat edges of the flower against the glue until it dries, use Craft Glue Dots, or since I was working with felt (or any fabric), I chose to stitch it together.

Here's how I did that:

(Photo above): Starting on the bottom of the flower, holding the round center against the flat edge of the petals, run a stitch all the way from one side through all the bottom layers, to the other side.

Turn the flower a 1/4 turn and start stitch again, but go only half way through, going up through the center of the flower. Start the next stitch down through the center of the flower and out the other side (going in the same direction as when you started). That seems to be enough to hold all the layers of the flower securely!

For the scalloped lower portion of the card, I used Tim Holtz's On The Edge-Scallops die.  But My Favorite Things has this similar Wonky Scallop Border, if you'd rather stick with a low profile die.

The darling little house is from Paper Smooches' Promenade stamp set. I stamped it on an Inchie Arts Ivory Twinchie Square and colored it with Copic Sketch markers (BG72, E43, E44, G85, R29, RV09, Y35).  I chose a card base of Memory Box Mango notecard to bring all the colors of this card together. A bit of Lemonade Baker's twine finishes off this card.

Thanks for joining me today . . . I hope you'll find lots of fun uses for these pretty felt roses!

Stamps: Paper Smooches-Promenade; Hero Arts Clear-Everyday Sayings; 
Paper: Memory Box Notecard & Envelopes-Mango; Hero Arts Layering Paper-Latte; 
Dies: My Favorite Things Die-namics-Large Royal Rose; Sizzix Tim Holtz On The Edge-Scallops; 
Ink: Memento Rich Cocoa; 
Copic Markers: BG72, E43, E44, G85, R29, RV09, Y35
Accessories: Inchie Arts Twinchie Squares-Assorted (Ivory); Simply Swank Locking Hemostat Pliers, Wool Felt-20%: Baby Blue, Fuchsia, Red; Wool Felt-35%: Shady Grove; Sew Easy Baker's Twine-Primary; Craft Glue Dots; 

Velveteen Stamping with Karolyn Loncon

It is so much fun to share our guest designer, Karolyn Loncon, with you today! It has been my honor to know Karolyn now for several years and to have had the pleasure of her company here in our office/warehouse. Yes, Karolyn lives in the Pacific Northwest during the prettiest months of the year and it is always wonderful to see her when the opportunity arises. Karolyn's clean and simple style has earned her many accolades - she was crowned a Stamping Royalty winner in 2011. She is a "Girl Friday" and works wonders with her electronic cutter as part of the Cameo Spotlight design team.

Karolyn shares many inspirational projects on her blog, Paper Therapy - and yes, it might be her therapy, but I can assure you it will be therapy to just feast your eyes on her delicious projects as well. I would like to invite you to head over to Karolyn's blog and help us say thank you for sharing her talents with us here in the CLASSroom today. Please leave your comment on her post about being our guest and as our way of thanking you for taking the time to do so you will have a chance to win some of the fab goodies used in today's post! You know you are in the right spot if you see the following picture.

Thank you Karolyn for sharing your creativity with us here in the CLASSroom! -Ellen

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Hello from the CLASSroom!

I was so honored and humbled when Ellen asked me to prepare a little project for you all, especially in light of all the other wonderful guest designers that Ellen has had here. Her CLASSroom is one of my most favorite places to visit to learn about
this craft that I love so much.  I’m so excited to share my project with you, and hope that you enjoy it as much as I did preparing it for you.  So let’s get to it, shall we?

Let’s be honest – I don’t do a ton of techniques in my crafting life, mostly because my card design style is pretty clean and simple.  So when I came across the Velveteen Stamping technique on Shari Carroll’s blog several months ago, I squealed with delight as I feel like it’s a technique that lends itself to clean and simple designs, and offers a huge WOW factor!  BONUS!

First, I inked up and stamped the Houndstooth Background from Paper Smooches onto white cardstock with the most amazing white pigment ink that I’ve EVER used – Unicorn Pigment Ink by Hero Arts/Memories!  No joke – this ink offers incredible coverage and a perfect image every single time!  I can’t imagine my crafting life without this ink – no craft room should be without it! You’re welcome.  HeeHee

Back to the project – okay, so you don’t need to wait for the pigment ink to really dry; in fact, this technique really pops when the ink is still a little tacky.  It’s also important that the background be stamped in a pigment ink or this technique won’t really work.  Next, you’re going to want to choose images to stamp that have a good amount of solid space – silhouettes work best.  I used images from another Paper Smooches set called Reflections. 

I used three different Hero Arts Dye Inks for the next step, which is to stamp your silhouette images onto the pigment houndstooth background.  Again, it’s critical to
use dye inks for your silhouette images as the dye inks will be resisted as they’re stamped onto the pigment ink.  As you stamp each image, you’ll want to have a rag or towel available to “blot” the dye ink and allow the houndstooth background to show through.  I stamped, blotted, and cleaned the stamp every single time I stamped an image. 

I continued this process until I had my desired pattern.  I adhered the image panel to a Kraft card base with foam squares.  I trimmed out a banner strip and stamped the sentiment, adhering it to the image panel, again with foam squares.  To finish off the project, I adhered tiny white pearls to the centers of the flowers, which I think added a really simple yet elegant touch, don’t you?

Here’s a close-up of what the stamping looks like when it’s finished.  Isn’t it yummy?  I love how that houndstooth pattern peeks through each of the silhouette images to add some great interest and dimension– yet it’s one layer!  Amazing, right?!

Well, that’s it for me, kids!  I loved sharing my project with you today, and hope that you’ll try this technique for yourself!  Thanks so much for joining me in the CLASSroom today!

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Designing with Neon by Julie Ebersole

When I was a teenager back in the '80s, neon was hot! I must admit to being intimidated when the trend came back into vogue this year... But, then I took it as a challenge to stretch creatively! :)

Probably one of the easiest ways to interject these hot new colors into your projects is by playing with inks, like the new Hero Arts Neon Inks! It took some experimentation to find the right combinations that I was satisfied with, so don't worry if your initial attempts leave you feeling a bit unsure--I look at it as part of the process. :)

Even so, I do have some tips to share that will hopefully guide you on the quest to incorporate this fun trend into your paper crafting!

And, be sure to enbiggan the pics by clicking on them!

For me the biggest rule of thumb, when it comes to neon, is that less equals more; use it sparingly!

This design features two neon speech bubbles, flanked on the right by a more subdued, yet still bright "pool" color of blue.  It compliments the neon orange and pink quite nicely, without overwhelming or competing, as do the birds stamped simply in black ink.

Partner neon with a neutral hue, such as grey. In the above example, the soft grey (it's actually called "Cloudy Blue", but it stamps "grey") color used on the alpha letters acts as a counter-balance to the vivid neon orange and yellow scattered dots. A little bit of Crystal Stickles also reflects the color and enhances the overall effect in a very light and airy way!

Use neon colors with patterned border stamps (Chevron - My Happy by Hero Arts/Studio Calico, Polka Dots - Geo-Graphic by Paper Smooches, Zig Zag Stitching - Sew Artsy by Hero Arts)--it will give great "pop"! The white spacing gives some breathing room to the neon hues; a black base card and some black accents also help ground the design and keep it from being overly dominating. I think this makes a great teen card, or just even fun for a guy card!

Want a dramatic blended effect? Sponge neon hues onto white card stock, allowing them to overlap and mix, creating additional hues--this combo would make a fantastic sunset effect on a scenic design as well! The white popped up flowers (Sew Me Flowers - Hero Arts) offer a nice contrast to the neon backdrop.

Try stamping a neon hue with a large background stamp (Square Pattern Background, Clippings Collection by Basic Grey/Hero Arts) directly over the top of another color--this example above features neon pink atop a non-neon mandarin orange colored card stock.  Neon pink and green washi tapes (from my stash) accent the design, and the focal sentiment is stamped in full-on neon pink, and subtly edged with neon orange.

This simple design was inspired by a Letterpress card I had seen--the Citrus ink is not necessarily neon, but when paired with the Neon pink, the combo offers a refreshing jolt--I love that it makes me sit up and take notice! The "Thank You" banner by Savvy could also have been stamped with the Neon pink, and then the panel mounted to a neon pink base card if I'd had one on hand; I must admit to being particularly fond of green, however--green just seems to go so well with practically every other color on the planet. ;)

Thanks for joining me in the CLASSroom today and I hope today's post sparks some fun ideas for turnin' up the neon in your projects!

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SUPPLIES & MATERIALS

STAMPS: Telephone Lines by Impression Obsession; He Said/She Said, Geo-Graphic by Paper Smooches; My Happy by Studio Calico/Hero Arts; Sew Artsy, Many Birthday Wishes, This Is Big , Sew Me Flowers by Hero Arts; Square Pattern Background, Clippings Collection by Basic Grey/Hero Arts; Monogram Alphabet by My Favorite Things; "have a wonderful...[birthday]" and Scattered Dots by Savvy Stamps

INKS: Neon Pink, Orange, Yellow by Hero Arts; Adirondack Cloudy Blue, Pool, Citrus by Archival Black by Ranger; Mistery Huey's Mist in Inky Black; Copic Marker in YG23 New Leaf

PAPERS:  Neenah Solar White (25 sheet pack or ream); Key Lime by Memory Box; Pool and Sunshine Layering Papers by Hero Arts; Black Card Stock

EMBELLISHMENTS: Crystal and Lime Green Stickles; Washi Tapes (from my stash)

TOOLS: 1 3/4" Circle Punch

OTHER: 3D Dots; Round Sponges (quartered)

Wood You Just Roll With It by Sharon Harnist

I absolutely love Kim Hughes' whimisical style of Paper Smooches stamps ... they beg for a clean, graphic style that I love to create every so often!  Aren't these Spiffy Scooters adorable?!! 

I stamped the scooter with Memento's new Gray Flannel ink onto Neenah Solar White Cardstock -- I like that this color is a bit softer than black ink (and more of a true toner gray), but darker than Memento's only previous lighter London Fog gray (which has a bit of a green tint to it). I colored it with the Copic Sketch Markers shown below ... I went with a girly pink color scheme, but you could make this a boy's scooter & card just as easily!

I found that the Copic Toner colors matched best with the Gray Flannel ink.  

Copic Tip: To achieve the shiny chrome-like highlight on the scooter's fenders, I just left those spaces white when coloring my first base coat of T1 in those areas. Then I added a darker T3 towards the bottom of the fenders for shading. The tires and seat were colored with T3 & T5. The pink parts of the scooter were colored with RV000 and R81; R83 for tail lights and YR31 for the front lights.

After coloring the scooter, I decided to stay with a pink and gray color scheme for my card, so I stamped Kim's Timber background with Spun Sugar Distress Ink onto a Memory Box Bubblegum Notecard.

How fun is this background?!!  In the description, Kim says:

"This is not an ordinary wood grain pattern. Paper Smooches' woodgrain is unique! It has thicker lines that look so cool when stamped! Use it for ripples of water, a zebra pattern or how about smoke for a camping (or red hot) theme?"  Versatile ideas I never would have thought of!

To make the road, I chose a pretty metallic Galvanized cardstock and used Tim Holtz Design Ruler and White Opaque Pen to evenly space and draw the stripes down the road:

The sentiment was also stamped with Spun Sugar Distress Ink inside the cloud (or poof of engine exhaust fumes!) and adhered directly on the card front. The scooter is popped up on a double layer of Copic's High Tack Double-Sided Foam Mounting Tape:

A quick little bow of this fun Maya Road Sparkle Silver Twine Cording finishes my card.  I hope you "just roll with it" this weekend and have some relaxing (stamping?!!) fun!

~ Sharon

Stamps: Paper Smooches by Kim Hughes-Spiffy Scooters & Timber; 
Paper: Neenah Cardstock-Solar White; Memory Box Notecards & Envelopes-Bubblegum; Curious Metallic Cardstock-Galvanized; 
Ink: Memento Gray Flannel; Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Ink-Spun Sugar; 
Copic Sketch Markers: RV000, R81, R83, T0, T1, T2, T3, T5, YR31
Accessories: Tim Holtz Design Ruler; Ranger White Opaque Pen; Maya Road Twine Cording-Sparkle Silver; Copic High Tack Double-Sided Foam Mounting Tape; 

Paper Smooches Croppin', Hoppin' and Halloweenie Fun

September is right around the corner and with it comes the fall buzz for all fun and crafty "Halloweenie" things. This new set from Paper Smooches debuts on September 1st, so you will not find it in the store until that date. BUT I have a special surprise for you! We are using it today in our Warehouse Crop and we do not want you to feel left out. Read through this post and share which Paper Smooches set is your favorite with us in the comments section to be included in this random drawing for an opportunity to win your very own set!

 

This little witchie just make one grin - yes, she is a cute ghoul - ha! ha!

To color her I used Copic colors - YG11, YG25, YG00, W00, R02, R08, YR16, YR68, YR09, 100 and V04.

Her hat and dress are paper pieced with the spidery paper from the Graphic 45 Hallowe'en in Wonderland 8x8 collection. Then using a White Pastel Pencil I added color around the "edges" of the design to add depth. Use the Clear Glaze pen to add shine to her lips and the blacks of her eyes. A yellow Spica Glitter Pen was used on the orange in her socks and the buckle on her hat. It is amazing how much these little details help to create a special image.

 

Tip: When cutting out fine details such as the heels on the witches boot cut out the areas that have the most delicate parts first. To have the added stability of the remaining cardstock will help you keep them in pristine condition.

Then using a black marker color over the cut out portion - this helps eliminate any white spots!

Every witch needs a sparkly moon. When airbrushing I like to create a mask that does not "buffet" in the "breeze." To diecut Eclipse tape, my favorite paper masking material,  I affix the Eclipse to a piece of typing paper or cardstock and then cut out the image. In this case I used the Memory Box Flower Mound die - I felt it created a delightful moon background :-D

Firmly affix it to your moon. 

Airbrush with several colors to create a fabulous color combination - I used YR09, YR68 and YR16. 

Remove mask and reveal your fun new moon. 
 

To adhere the Be Creative (Sookwang) tape to your project simply place the moon face down on to the adhesive surface. Using the Fiskars fingertip knife I run it around the exterior of my circle, cutting through the adhesive. Then use your finger to easily roll the excess adhesive away.

Use Warm Highlights glitter and the Burnished Velvet technique (read more about that technique here if you don't remember the details) bring your moon to life.
 

One of the advantages to clear stamps is the ease of cutting the sentiments and customizing them. "hey cute ghoul" comes as one long piece. I wanted to create a shorter, stacked version, so I simply cut it between the words rounding the edges on the end.
 

To then be able to determine the fit makes it so easy to use.
 

Stamp the background using Deep Violet ink, add a few bats (sorry this is an old Martha Stewart punch I just couldn't resist using) and a gemstone for balance and bling.

 
Now don't forget to leave a comment below telling us what your favorite Paper Smooches stamp set is! You have until midnight Sunday, August 28th to be included in this random drawing for the Paper Smooches Halloweenie set!

 
stamps: Paper Smooches Halloweenie (stamp set will be available here in our store on September 1st), Hero Arts Cling Classic Fabric Design

ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, Archival Deep Purple

paper: Memory Box Granny Smith Notecard, Cantaloupe & Lavender Cardstock, Neenah Solar White

accessories: Memory Box Chadwick Label Die, Citron Gemstone, Clear Glaze Pen, Lemon Spica Glitter Pen, White Pastel Pencil, 4 1/2" Be Creative Tape (Sookwang) or Tape Sheets, Warm Highlights Glitter, Eclipse Tape,

Paper Smooches Swanky Snowman Tag and Memory Box Puffy Clouds Die Tutorial

We are so very excited to be carrying Kim Hughes Paper Smooches stamps in our store --- being able to color and paper piece these cuties is something I adore! We are also thrilled to be hosting our very first "Warehouse Crop!" We only have three spots left, so if you live in the Seattle metropolitan area we would love to have you join us this coming Saturday between noon and 6:00 p.m. You can find complete details here.

This is one of the projects I have created for the women attending to do as a make n' take and I thought I would share it with you today because it has a couple of tips and ideas that I hope you might enjoy and learn from.

The Basic Grey Nordic papers coordinate fabulously with the Swanky Snowmen! With the holiday season just around the corner (yes, for me it is just around the corner, as it ALWAYS sneaks up on me) I felt that a tag would be something everyone could use.

To begin I stamped with Archival Jet Black Ink. I have found that it is important to use a waterproof ink when applying lots of Rock Candy Distress Stickles to keep the image from bleeding. Memento has a tendency to bleed out on me with this combination. I kept my coloring with Copics to a minimum and where it was important not to "bleed" the ink lines, I made certain to stay inside the lines of my stamped image. I then applied the Rock Candy and used my Heat It tool to quickly dry my now sparkly, snowy image.

Copic colors used: T1, 0, E17, YR04, YR07

Rock Candy can also be applied to give the clouds a "silver lining".

 

The Memory Box Puffy Clouds die comes as shown above. The scale and size of these dies is PERFECT for card making! I wanted to use it in a way that the format they come in would not allow and so I decided to test my idea to create individual clouds.

Using my wire cutters I carefully snipped my pieces apart as shown above.

To remove the sharp, pointy tips I then used a file in my Precision kit to file these down until I had a nice, smooth finish. If I had been working at home I would have probably used my Dremel, but using this file made it super easy to control exactly how much of the metal I removed. Take your time and be patient as you file. I am now free to use these clouds in any position!!! 

Now to share some of the many options I have available with these new free form clouds - a girl's gotta love options :-D

THE MANY WAYS TO USE A MEMORY BOX DIE

CUT-OUTS

 

The first way you can use these dies is to create cut-outs in precise locations. Simply use a piece of tissue tape to hold the die in place and run through your machine. I use the following sandwich:

• Solo Platform
• Solo Shim (this comes with the Platform, but because it can be damaged after loads of use it can be purchased separately)
• Solo Thin Die Adapter
• Extra shim if necessary - this can be as thin as a piece of copy paper to as thick as a piece of Craft-a-Board. Some machines and dies have a "sweet spot". If you cut out your die image and it is not quite cut all the way through simply add a shim to your sandwich.
• Acrylic Plate or Cutting Pad
• Cardstock
• Memory Box Die - Position with "blade" side facing down towards cardstock. I like to hold my die in position using tissue tape - this helps keep the alignment perfect. Yes, it's the perfectionist syndrome - LOL!
• Acrylic Plate or Cutting Pad

 

Pictured above is the tag with cut-outs. Of course you can use the clouds on a project as well!

EMBOSSED LINES

Some of the Memory Box dies can create beautiful, "puffy" embossed images or outlines as well. For this type of look we recommend the following sandwich:

• Solo Platform
• Solo Shim (this comes with the Platform, but because it can be damaged after loads of use it can be purchased separately)
• Texturz Impressions Pad  
• Acrylic Plate or Cutting Pad 
• Cardstock
• Memory Box Die - Position with "blade" side facing down towards cardstock. I like to hold my die in position using tissue tape - this helps keep the alignment perfect. Yes, it's the perfectionist syndrome - LOL!
• Acrylic Plate or Cutting Pad

You can use the front side for this "puffy" look...

 
or the back side for a more defined look!

INNIES AND OUTIES

OK - I can't help myself, this is what came to mind when I was trying to think up a name for this and I started to laugh and knew I would remember this one.

 

This technique embosses the entire back surface of the die, similar to embossing something such as a coin. It lends such a fun look to some images. If you use this technique with a die that has a coordinating image you can easily stamp your image into the embossed shape!

For this type of look we recommend the following sandwich:

• Solo Platform
• Solo Shim (this comes with the Platform, but because it can be damaged after loads of use it can be purchased separately)
• Texturz Impressions Pad  
• Acrylic Plate or Cutting Pad 
• Cardstock
• Memory Box Die - Position with "blade" side facing upwards away from cardstock. I like to hold my die in position using tissue tape - this helps keep the alignment perfect. Yes, it's the perfectionist syndrome - LOL!
• Acrylic Plate or Cutting Pad

 

One side of your surface has your "innies"...

and the other your "outties."

Combine all three looks for something really unique!

For today's project I used a combination of "innies" and a cloud cut-out of designer paper. So much fun!!! After embossing use an ink blending tool and in a swirling motion add Pool ink to the tag edges.

Just a couple more little tips or tricks and our tag is complete. Use the tiny attacher to staple a piece of Baker's Twine to your project and then tie the twine into a cute little bow.

Use the Tiny Attacher staples to create snowflakes in your sky!

When using the black Enamel Accents I like to make my first "dot" on a piece of scrap paper. This ensures that all the air is out of the tip and I don't end up with a dot of enormous magnitude or a "splotch" when it pops. The key to making pretty dots is to hold the applicator in an upright position and then slowly lift straight up allowing the little "string" to release back into the center of the dot. Black Enamel Accents make fabulous "coal" eyes and mouth!

Last I adhered some Bakers Twine to the back side of the scarf and poked a hole, inserting twine through the pom pom area. It's all the little details that just make me giddy - LOL!

Now be certain to return here on Saturday as I have another surprise for you - we can't have all the fun n the Warehouse, without providing you a little fun here in the CLASSroom now can we?!?
 

stamps: Paper Smooches Swanky Snowdudes

ink: Archival Jet Black, Hero Arts Pool Shadow Ink, Tumbled Glass Distress Stain

paper: Neenah Classic Crest Solar White, Basic Grey Nordic 6x6 Paper Pad

accessories: Tim Holtz Tag & Bookplates Die, Tiny Attacher, Rock Candy Distress Stickles, Black Enamel Accents, Memory Box Puffy Clouds, Bakers Twine, 1/2" Essentials by Ellen Crinkle Ribbon