the CLASSroom

Inchie Twinchies by Susan Roberts

These new little Inchie+ and Twinchies are just as fun to play with as their Inchie sibling.  In fact with 3 sizes and all the wonderful neutral tones now available, there is even more opportunity for some creative adventures and mixing and matching.

 

On my first card I decided it would be fun to use the Inchies themselves as the focal point.

 

I punched half circles along the edges of a black Inchie+, at the corners of an Inchie and holes through the center of both.

 

The two Inchies were connected with a large flat brad making a perfect platform for a cute little Art Flower and Pearl.

 

On the second card the Inchie+ and Twinchie are not altered in any way but are instead left completely original in their fabulousness.

 

They make a perfect backdrop for the Art Flowers and Button.

 

The green Art Flower was colored with a yellow Copic Marker to better match the Graphic 45 designer paper used on the card.  The top flower shows the original color of the flower.  I love being able to alter/color the Art Flowers to match any dp.

 

The third card also used a Twinchie and 2 Inchies as a backdrop and also as an accent for the flowers (hand drawn and colored with Copics).

 

However instead of just stacking the Inchies, they have been offset to create a slightly different look.

 

The flourishes were made using an Ornare Template and Piercing Tool.  A Copic Multiliner (0.1) was used to create the faux stitching.

 

I so love the many mix and match possibilities with these cute little Inchies and hope that you can have some creative fun with them, too.

(Click image for larger view.)

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Stamps:  Card 1:  Cornish Heritage Farms “Kim Hughes Silhouette Blooms I”, “Rice Paper Backgrounder”, and “Scene It, Mountains”; Card 2:  Cornish Heritage Farms "Mona Lisa Moments Christmas Expressions"

Supplies:  Inchies, Inchie+ and Twinchie Squares; Ornare Piercing Tool and Template; Graphic 45 Designer Paper "Christmas Past Glad Tidings", "Renaissance Faire, Triumphant", "Renaissance Faire, Enlightened", Off White 1-5/8" Twill Ribbon; Jellie Ribbon Lace; Art Flowers; Pearls; Copics; Button

Peppermint Wreath Card by Debbie Olson

Welcome to the CLASSroom! Today I have a sweet treat to share, Karen Lockhart's Candy Wreath stamp combined with papers from the Cosmo Cricket Jolly by Golly Mini Deck.

Here I have stamped the image in Memento Tuxedo Black ink and colored the stripes with Copic marker R29.

Here I have added some shadows with Copic C1 and C2 (out of stock at the moment), shading the ends of the wrappers, and shading in between the wrapped candies.

On this image, I have applied Ranger's Glossy Accents--very carefully too! You'll want to try to dot a drop right in the center of each candy and not put so much that the puddles leak out to form huge glossy clusters.

For the background papers, I used two candy-related patterns from the Jolly by Golly Mini Deck, A bit of sanding, distressing, and sewing, together with some red cardstock mats, took care of the background. I used some natural twill and a red button, along with a tag from Vintage Christmas Expressions. I used Standard Circle and Tags Trio dies to cut and emboss the focal image and the tag.

Thank you for visiting the CLASSroom today!

Canvas Album Part Two by Julia Stainton

I've been enjoying using different techniques to create my canvas album and today's tutorial is focusing on adhering to fabric and stamping on it. If you missed part one and would like to see the stitched trim page, you can find it at this link, Canvas Album Part One.

This page is a very unstructured collage look and is the back of the page created for the last tutorial. You can see how it covers up the stitching if that is something that you do not like the look of. I started off by choosing some more photos, some embellishments and some patterned paper. Again, I have used copies of the originals to preserve them. You can have copies made at your local photo store or scan, edit and print them yourself if you have the technology.

Because of the different techniques I am choosing for this album, to provide some cohesiveness, I will try and carry some embellishments and concepts throughout the pages. For this album I'll be using trims, vintage collage style designs, soft colors and black and white photos of glimpses of my mom's life.

Stitching is a great way to apply paper to fabric but for this page, I already have a design stitched to the other side. I need an adhesive that will work well with the canvas page. A liquid adhesive is the way to go as a dry adhesive will just come off. You can use adhesives such as Mono Multi, Perfect Paper Adhesive, Zip Dry or even the Claudine Helmuth Multi Medium. Glossy Accents will work but it will tend to be a bit brittle for this album. I started off creating my page by adhering the Basic Grey Lemoade 6x6 patterned paper and then the photos with a liquid adhesive.

 

To make some custom embellishments, I use this Basic Grey chipboard K (for Kathleen)and painted it with Studio Acrylic Paint in Painterly Pink. To further embellish the letter, I randomly stamped it with elements from the Botanical Bliss stamp set by CHF.

Using the same Botanical Bliss set, I stamped this poppy image in Tuxedo Black Memento Ink and colored with Copic markers.

 

Here's a few details of the layout...

The finished stamped K is layered with a large white flower and beautiful new silk ribbon,  and button detail.

I used various elements from the Botanical Bliss set to stamp directly onto the canvas and photographs. i find that the Palette Hybrid Inks by Stewart Superior work really well on cloth and ribbon. Also in this photo I have used trim from the previous page and paired it up with the Tim Holtz Film Strip Ribbon.

 

Finally here is the detail of the stamped poppy along with another Tim Holtz embellishment.
 

Have fun creating with the Prima Canvas Album. I'll be back next week with a couple fun photo tricks.

Thanks for stopping by the CLASSroom and don't forget about Ellen's fabulous Black Friday to Cyber Monday sale.

Glittery Bird Holiday by Sharon Harnist

A very happy Thanksgiving Day to our US friends!  Since today officially begins the holiday season, I thought I would share a very elegant but quick and easy-to-recreate holiday decoration!  It seems glitter is a hot trend right now and thank goodness Martha Stewart makes it super easy with her assortment packs of glitter, to have just the right color on hand for whatever project you'd like to add it!

 
This is a 6-inch square door hanger or wall hanging ... I think this one will find a place in my guest powder room this holiday season!  Webster's gorgeous Petite Papers and designer trim make a very easy job of pulling together a project nicely.  Their rich, eclectic collage papers are a style I love!

I just adhered the paper onto a 6-inch piece of Craft-A-Board and then adhered this beautiful burgundy pleated Webster's trim to the back, looping it at the top to create a hanger.  The edges of the paper were sponged with Antique Linen Distress ink.  The bird was die cut from Neenah Classic Cream cardstock and then run through my Xyron machine, so it would hold onto all that lovely Cinnabar Martha Stewart glitter! 

 
Glitter Birdie was popped up on foam tape and the sentiment stamped, cut into a banner shape and tucked underneath the bird's beak (it is also on foam tape). Tied buttons finish it off and there you have a quick holiday decoration for yourself or gift for someone else!

We hope you enjoy the holiday today with your family and we thank you for taking the time to visit us!   
Stamps: CHF-Mona Lisa Moments Vintage Christmas Expressions
Paper: Webster's Pages Petite Papers-Home/Holidays & Winter's Wings, Neenah Classic Cream 
Ink: Ranger Adirondack Cranberry dye ink, Antique Linen Distress Ink
Accessories: Craft-A-Board, Spellbinders Nested Bird die set, Martha Stewart Essential Colors Glitter Set (Cinnabar), buttons 

Happy Thanksgiving Blog Candy

Today celebrates our third anniversary - I simply cannot believe that it has been three years since the day that the shelf in my family's laundry room became a store. It was a small thing I dreamed of doing, but it got bigger, and bigger, as I did my best to try and make a difference in others lives and a difference in my family's life. Sometimes life just gets in the way of the simple plans that you have in your mind. It all starts out so simply, but then becomes more complex than you could ever imagine.

I had hoped to do so much more this past week to celebrate with you, but the reality is that exhaustion is playing a part in my daily life and so I will simply raise a glass to all of YOU! Thank you for being a part of my life, thank you for your messages of encouragement and thanks, thank you for being here to support this dream that has become far too complex some days - simply... THANK YOU and cheers to you! 

 

When this post is completed I am going to shut down my computer and go home to my family. I'm going to tell them I love them and I am so very thankful for them.

Being that the theme of our celebration is gratitude and simplicity I would love to hear what it is that you are grateful for this past year. Please leave a comment below to be entered in a random drawing for the following delicious goodies valued over $135:

 

• Eskimo Kisses 6x6 Paper Pad
• Mother of Pearl Fantasy Film
• Martha Stewart Large Craft Punch, Flute and Bubbles
• Martha Stewart Edger Punch with Wings, Cheers
• Twinchie Squares, Assorted
• Polar White Flower Soft
• Flower Soft Display Snow Globe
• Memory Box Fancy the Fawn
• Lockhart 2009 Limited Edition "Nicholas & Kitty"
• Cornish Heritage Farms, Petite Pattern Backgrounder
• Nestability Dies - Circle, Pinked Small
• Basic Grey Bling It Series, White

All comments must be made by 11:59pm Pacific Time on Monday, November 30th to be eligible for the random drawing.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Sparkling Trees by Kim Hughes

Since I recently moved to Arizona from a place that had all 4 seasons, it's hard for me to realize that winter is coming (or has already arrived in some places).  The weather is more fall like for us, so I was inspired to create this card.  BUT, it can be easily conformed to fit any season or occasion.   Simply change the color scheme and voila..it's the perfect card for any time of year.

Supplies:

Basic Grey Buttons, Nook and Pantry

Gemstones, Small Blossom

Martha Stewart Baker's Twine, Solids

Ranger: Adirondack Dye Ink Pad, Salmon, Distressed Stickles, Dried Marigold, Stickles, Fruit Punch, Distressed Stickles, Antique Linen, Distressed Stickles, Old Paper

Memory Box Tree Border, B1 Notecards and Envelopes, Cotton Candy, E8 Notecards and Envelopes, Dill

CHF Backgrounder, Wood Grain, Mona Lisa Moments, Motivational Centers

start by creating your own patterned paper by stamping a wood grain pattern onto your card base with a slightly darker colored ink color than the paper.

 

Stamp the tree border at the bottom and we will build from here.

 

The Stickles applicator can come out pretty fast sometimes, so I chose to use the eraser end of a mechanical pencil to apply the liquid glitter.  Apply Stickles to the end and dab onto the trees.  Experiment and cover the entire tree top or apply sparingly to make it look like leaves have fallen.

Allow plenty of time to dry before touching.  Once the small dots of glittered color have dried, go back and add some flower sparkle gems and some larger dabs of glitter Stickles.

 

Complete the card by adding a graphic element to the bottom...in this case, a bold piece of solid card stock to balance out the color.  Stamp the sentiment to the left with the same ink as the tree border and balance the weight with 3 accent buttons on top.  I added some Stickles to the larger button to help draw your eye up the left side of the card.  Finish off with colored twine through the button holes and along the tree line.

Create this card in blue hues and add sparkling silver to the trees...ohhh, I can only imagine how beautiful that would look!  You can mass produce this concept for your holiday cards, just leave off the bulk.  The design is strong enough to stand on it's own without the extra dimension.

Thanks so much for stopping by :)

Technique Tag Multi-Colored Napkin Ring

Looking for a quick and easy way to create some unique decorations for your table on Thanksgiving? Why not start here with a multi-colored napkin ring that is sure to give your plate pizazz.

Start with a few colors that will compliment the decor of your room or table. I used "Espresso" "Terra Cotta" and "Carmel" Adirondack ink for my project.

I pressed the pad lightly into my "Craft Sheet", it is important to work on this surface for this technique. The craft sheet keeps the ink in place, isn't absorbed and cleans up quickly and easily when we are done.

Next gently roll your "large brayer" back and forth gently until it is covered around the circumference with the ink. It is important to keep it in approximately the same area so you get pretty distinct colors, if you move it around to much it will all become the same color. (ask me how I know this)

 

Then take the brayer and roll it onto your "Picotage" Backgrounder. Again, keep it in the same approximate area so that the colors don't get mushed together.

 

Apply the stamp to a "Large #8 Tag" and apply even pressure. There is a little tag bit left over, re-apply the ink and flip the stamp the opposite direction and the colors will match up and create a nice coverage for the entire tag.

This is what the tag looks like when it has been stamped. I think these colors are so beautiful together and really encompass the rich colors of the fall season.

I needed a ribbon that would compliment the colors in the tag and didn't have one on hand so used the May Arts "white silk ribbon" and colored it with my E35 Copic marker.

I trimmed a piece of paper from my "Cosmo Cricket Earth Love" 6" x 6" paper deck to 1" and adhered it through the middle of the tag. The way the blues in the paper compliment the rich colors of the inks is so beautiful to me!

Of course I had to stitch it on, but you don't have to. I really like how finished it looks this way. Punch a little hole so your ribbon has a place to slip through and trim the corners of the other end. I used another tag as the template so they were even.

Fold your ribbon in half and stitch it down at the half way point to the other end of the tag. I do recommend stitching at this point, there is a lot of tension created when we roll it up and tie it. I am not sure what kinds of adhesive would hold it in place, so even just a quick hand stitch if you don't want to get out (or don't have) the machine.

This is what it looks like finished, and it would be really easy to tie a tiny tag with a name on it if you wanted to use the napkin ring as a name card as well. There will only be five at my table this year, so I didn't do that, but it would be a very quick and cute add if you would like.

The multi-color technique is great for so many different types of projects and seasons, I hope you find some time to play with it and make it your own!

I hope that everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving Holiday and enjoys what it brings into your life. I will be celebrating with an attitude of gratitude for what I have been blessed with, and trying to help my loved ones do the same.

B-

Classic Christmas Part II by Debbie Olson

Last week I started a series of cards made from the Graphic 45 Christmas Past line, in addition to some other common paper crafting supplies and accessories including Stickles, silk ribbon, cardstock, Vintage Christmas Expressions, and gold embossing powder. Today I have four more cards in the same series.

Here I highlighted the angel's hair and wings with a Buttermilk Spica glitter pen, as well as adding a sentiment from the Vintage Christmas Expressions set.

Candles are dotted with Star Dust Stickles, and sentiment is gold-embossed from Vintage Christmas Expressions.

The tree at the top has Stickles added for sparkle.

Is it just me, or does this Santa look a little worried? I added Stickles to the centers of the poinsettia blooms on this one.

That's it--eight cards from five sheets of patterned paper, and I have enough left for a few more if I'm careful with the scraps. (Sheets I used were Jolly Old St, Nicholas, The Holly and the Ivy, Ode to Joy, Christmas Past Frames, and Christmas Past Tags.) Thank you for visiting the CLASSroom!

Jolly by Golly "Magic Snowflakes" Christmas Card

Today is the last day of our Anniversary Celebration Sale! So remember to shop today, using our promo code 3anniv when you place your order, for a 15% discount on everything you order.

What a week! If you saw our warehouse right now you would probably LOL! We are very well organized - we have to be. When you need to accomplish a lot in a small space... it's a must to be organized. Well organization and well planned space sorta went a slidin' down a slippery slope this week.

I had been hoping that the new Martha Stewart punches would arrive LAST week, but no such luck. They arrived in the midst of our busy week. Oh vey! I worked like a busy bee on Wednesday late into the evening unpacking, photographing, editing photos and then finally getting everything uploaded to the store. Needless to say the punches are not yet organized - so please do us a big favor and just buy them all so that we don't need to find shelf space - LOL!

Word on the street is that the new Martha Scoring Board has taken on a life of it's own - if  you find one and are considering it... don't wait too long. We only have a few and once those are gone we won't be getting more until some time in the new year :(. If you are in the market for a scoring board and looking for an inexpensive alternative to the Scor-It board then this tool is something you might want to try. It is not the true scoring device that the Scor-It board is, but I was shocked (in a good way) when I tried it for the first time. Our sales representative brought it by and I tested it out. I will most definitely give it a thumbs up and hope to do a review for you shortly, so that I can share the Pros and Cons I have discovered. There are a few Cons, but I think that the price point is such that the Pros outweight them.

Then there are the punches - WOW is all I could say. Once again there are some break-out designs that are must-haves. As typical some are already out of stock - arggh - but because there are so many fabulous designs I'm hoping that we have enough to go around.

So on to a little "punchy" inspiration! As I look at the completed card below I can't help but think of Whoville. Don't you think this little card would fit perfectly in to "How the Grinch Stole Christmas?"

 

Beate did a fabulous video tutorial this past week that grabbed my attention -it is a technique called "Magic Snowflake." Immediately I thought of the gorgeous "tree" images we have in our store. Jolly by Golly has been sitting on my desktop beaconing me for weeks now and so I decided to use a contemporary image and try this technique.

I began by stamping the image using Versamark ink on to white glossy cardstock and embossing with fine, clear embossing powder. Next I followed Beate's directions and soaked my cotton ball with blending solution - I didn't have any rubbing alcohol at work. I had two cotton balls and so the pressure was on to do it perfect the first time round - LOL!

As you can see by the cotton ball above I started with three drops of Juniper dye reinker and then realized that it was not even close to the color I wanted and so I quickly grabbed my Aqua reinker and generously added more drops of Aqua to the same cotton ball. Good news is that it worked out perfectly :)

After applying the color to the entire surface I used my Heat It tool as shown in Beate's video. I was a little surprised to see these little "puddles" of color pop up. It really is a cool effect but I knew that I wanted to use this image together with the smooth look of the Jolly by Golly papers and so I used a soft paper towel to remove the excess ink.

As you can see it smoothed out the project significantly. I did repeat the ink and heat step a couple of times to intensify the color.

Next I punched out a cranberry colored, brand new, garden trellis edge on two sides of my cranberry cardstock. One side I obscured with the cute yellow bells and the other I left more exposed.

I love the look of pleats in ribbon, it is so trendy. In trying to figure out the best way to do this I realized that I really had no clue how to accomplish this task. So I thought I would share with you what it is that I did in hopes of helping anyone else trying to achieve the pleated look.

First I used my Glue Glider to lay a strip of adhesive down. I was afraid that this alone might not hold it and so I used ribbon glue down each side as well.

I then placed my ribbon in to position and popped up a pleat. Next I applied glue down on top of the ribbon and bent the pleat over the glued area as shown above.

To hold it all in place until the glue was dry I just laid my bone folder over the top. Voila, perfect hold!

The look was completed with the adorable "Joy" and a few Dew Drops. A little white snowflake was diecut out of white felt and covered with Icicle Stickles and we have a wonderfully themed, happy, Whoville card! Thank you Beate for inspiring me this week!

stamps:  Memory Box Twisty Pine, Lockhart Joy

ink: VersaMark Ink, Memento Tuxedo Black, Adirondack Aqua and Juniper Dye Reinkers

paper: Glossy White Cardstock, Cosmo Cricket Jolly by Golly, Memory Box Robin's Egg and Cranberry

accessories: Martha Stewart Garden Trellis Punch and Scalloped Tag Punch, Cosmo Cricket Jolly by Golly ribbon, Dew Drops - Primary and Cowboy, Martha Stewart Baker's Twine, Nestability Labels Eight, Icicle Stickles

Family Wall Art by Julia Stainton

One of the things I love about crafting is the opportunity to be creative and also creating things for my family or home. This week we're celebrating Ellen's 3rd anniversary of Ellen Hutson, LLC and to go along wtih that, I wanted to celebrate family. I hope you enjoy this fun project that will bring out your inner artist.

The base of this project is 9 4x4" canvases from Canvas Concepts. These canvases come in two packs so if you re-create this project exactly, you'll need a few packages with one canvas leftover for a mini canvas project. Feel free to change up your inspirational word. What about CREATE for your craft room for a great alternative?

The canvases used on this project come already primed so I was able to get right to work painting my canvases with Charcoal Black Studio Paint. The Studio Artist Brushes work really well for this project and I love the variety of sizes. Paint the sides of the canvases first for ease of handling and then the front. It really doesn't matter exactly how smooth you get the paint on. If you'd like a more hand-painted art look, feel free to vary the thickness of the paint. After covering the surface well, you'll want to allow the paint to dry at least a couple hours so that the mask doesn't remove it at a later step. To protect my work surface I used a Non-Stick Craft Sheet.

 

To create my word art I used a few different masks to easily mask off the areas I wanted to remain black. The 2 inch Newsprint Alphabet Masks were great for creating the letters. To embellish the non-letter squares, I used the Timeworks Mask and the Regal Mini Mask from Advantus.Press the sticky masks on well so that paint will not run under your mask.

The painting itself is a super fun experience. I encourage you to play around with the colors, brush it on light and heavy and just enjoy it. I used Landscape Green, Sky Blue, Yellow Pastel and Dash of Red to create my color palette. To get the more muted shades you see here, I mixed a dash of red or black in with the green and blue and painted the canvases. To get the more mottled artistic look you see below, I then lightly brushed on some surface colors to add interest to the layer. When you are satisfied with your look, allow to dry well.

I wanted to add a little more texture and interest to each canvas so I chose a few Backgrounders and Scrapblocks to stamp onto some of my canvases. I used Sophisticated Swirl Backgrounder, Spanish Script Backgrounder, Vintage Text Scrapblock and Wood Grain Backgrounder. Each was lightly inked with paint from a Black Adirondack Paint Dabber but you can also use the black paint that you painted the surface with and brush it over the stamps. Press carefully onto the surface of the canvas as desired.

Remove masks from surface of your canvases. I seem to have forgotten to remove the L mask on this photo but you get the idea. If you find that paint has bled under your mask, simply take the smallest brush and touch it up with black paint. Clean your masks and replace on carrier sheet as they can be reuses again and again for other projects.

 

Hang your wall art as desired and enjoy. If you use 9 squares, your finished piece will be approximately 14" square when hung.

 

I think the hardest part of this project was deciding which wall to hang it on.

Thanks for stopping by the CLASSroom!

Thankful Tag Book by Sharon Harnist

It is certainly the season to be thankful so just in time for the holiday, I created this thankful tag book.  The idea is that while your family is gathered for the holiday, each person writes down what they are thankful for.  It becomes a wonderfully treasured album to look back through each year!

The pages on the inside of the album are made from Tag Envelopes (one for each year) and each envelope contains tags for each member of the family to write on (you can click on any photo, for a larger view).

To start, I inked the Tag Envelope with Broken China Distress ink on the areas the patterned paper wouldn't cover (since the Webster's Petite Paper is 6" and the Tag Envelope is 6.50", not including the flap):

Then I lined the inside of the envelope flap and covered the outside of the envelope with patterned paper (Webster's Postcards/Cherry Pie Petite Papers).  Here are each of the tags I created for my family:

Basic instructions will follow; these are the inks I used on each tag:

Tag 1 (Gary) - Broken China, Shabby Shutters, Peeled Paint, Espresso (Lined Paper), Stream (dandelion)
Tag 2 (Alix) - Worn Lipstick, Dusty Concord, Fired Brick, Watermelon (Writer's Block), Purple Twilight (flowers)

Inks:
Tag 3 (Sharon) - Tattered Rose, Fired Brick, Aged Mahogany, Espresso (Lined Paper), Cranberry (flowers)
Tag 4 (Alyssa) - Scattered Straw, Dried Marigold, Brushed Corduroy (on tag edges & Writer's Block), Terra Cotta (flower)

The basic steps for each tag are:

Step 1 - Using first ink, add color on about half the tag (in whatever pattern you'd like), using Ink Blending Tool.

Step 2 - Add next ink to the remaining uninked area.


Step 3 - Add darkest color to edges of tag.

Step 4 - Stamp journaling lines (I used Writer's Block and Lined Paper backgrounders) onto tag with Adirondack dye ink.
Step 5 - Stamp flowers (I used Kim Hughes Silhouette Blooms I & II) in a contrasting color, using dye ink.
Step 6 - Add name and year with label maker.
Step 7 - Tie ribbon through tag hole (Webster's Classic Trim and Holiday/Winter Trim).

I used the back side of each tag, too, so we'll just have two tags in each year's envelope (which will keep the book not quite as thick).  But you could make separate tags for each person, if you think they'll have a lot to write! 

For my cover, I used Craft-A-Board and cut it to mimic the tag envelope shape.  It ended up measuring approximately 8.25" long and 4" tall.  I covered it in more Webster's Petite Papers (Magical Wishes/Sweet Life) and stamped Kim Hughes' "thankful hearts" (from Fall Silhouettes) in the center of the cover (with Cranberry Adirondack dye ink).  Then I cut out the bird from another piece of this paper pad and added it with foam tape to the center circle. 

More of Webster's wonderful trim (brown lace from the Classic trim package) finishes off the cover.  Then I bound it with my Bind-It-All, using 1/2" Antique Brass wire.  I know we will enjoy looking back through this book each year and reading what each person was thankful for.  Having two young children, this will no doubt prove a bit hilarious at times!  But wonderful to see it in their own handwriting.  We can also tuck some photos of the day inside the envelope, too.

If you happen to not celebrate Thanksgiving, you could always make this book and use it year round -- maybe having an envelope for each month and writing what you were thankful for that month.

We are thankful for YOU coming to visit us today (and every other day of the year!) and hope you are enjoying the store's anniversary celebration this week before enjoying the Thanksgiving holiday with your families next week.  Take care!

 
Stamps: CHF Backgrounders Writer's Block & Lined Paper. Kim Hughes Silhouette Blooms I & II, Fall Silhouettes
Paper: Large Manilla Tag #8, Webster's Petite Pages-Postcards/Cherry Pie & Magical Wishes/Sweet Life
Ink: Ranger Distress Inks: Scattered Straw, Dried Marigold, Brushed Corduroy, Broken China, Shabby Shutters, Peeled Paint, Tattered Rose, Fired Brick, Aged Mahogany, Worn Lipstick, Dusty Concord. Adirondack dye inks: Terra Cotta, Espresso, Stream, Cranberry, Watermelon, Purple Twilight 
Accessories: Craft-A-Board, Ranger Ink Blending Tool, Tag Envelopes, Webster's Classic Trim and Holiday/Winter Trim, Bind-It-All, Bind-It-All 1/2" Antique Brass Owire

A Desk Worthy Gift Idea by Kim Hughes

Having a desk in some way is more common than you may think...do you have a desk?  Do you like to surround yourself with nice things?  This is an idea that takes all of that into consideration.  This is a mini-desk accordion decor piece.  One side is a vintage looking piece of art and the other side is open to add pictures to or it can be used as a name plate.

 

Supplies:

CHF: Backgrounder, Leaves, Backgrounder, Open Circles, Rummage Bin, On the Desk PRECUT, Backgrounder, Houndstooth

Cut-N-Dry Stamp Pad Foam

Martha Stewart Baker's Twine, Solids

Twinchie Squares, Assorted

Adirondack Dye Ink Pad, Cranberry, Adirondack Dye Ink Pad, Espresso, Adirondack Dye Ink Pad, LettuceAdirondack Dye Ink Pad, Ginger

Studio Acrylic Paint, Blank Canvas

 

after you gather your supplies.  Put a thin coat of white paint to the twinchies and allow to dry.

Lightly adhere the 4 squares side by side onto scrap paper

Use a different color for each patterned stamp.  Ink only a portion of the large stamp and press onto the twinchie squares

Stamp all 3 patterns to create a subtle background.

Add in the darkest brown ink to stamp the boldest images.

add in ginger stamped accents

and then blend the colors with a foam square.  Dab and blot and add more dark brown ink.

Punch holes in each corner
 
...and then string the thread through the holes.  Tie a bow in the end.

Now you have a mini piece of vintage looking art.  :)
 

The wonderful thing about an accordion design is that you can use both sides and you can fold it up.  Create a mini album or brag book.  Play and have fun, I sure did :)

Crystal Clear Ornaments

First I would like to thank you for your support of our Anniversary Celebration Sale. We really appreciate your purchases and the girls are working quickly to get your orders out to you promtply, in hopes of having your items to you before the long Thanksgiving weekend!!!

Good things will be continuing to happen and we will be celebrating here shortly. Sadly I can only accomplish one thing at a time - LOL! Thank you for your patience as we fly through this week and head in to the fun ahead.

I am trying to work in overdrive to get the new Martha punches up on the site, as well as the items that continue to arrive to restock items that disappeared so rapidly. Keep checking back on the site if you had your eye on something that disappeared - hopefully it will arrive before the end of the day Friday. I will do my best to get those items up so that you can use our special discount code.

When we first received the medium weight Crystal Clear plastic I went in to testing mode. I immediately found out that I could cut the plastic with the open style Nestabilities, but hadn't tried it on the more intricate designs. I thought that it would probably just stretch the plastic. Well, yesterday we received a phonecall from a customer regarding the material and so I quickly ran in to my studio and cranked a snowflake through my Big Shot. Yippie, skippie - it was fabulous!

Following is the sandwich I used:

Cutting Sandwich

1. Multipurpose Platform - Tab 2 (use the entire platform)

2. Clear Acrylic mat

3. Tissue or copy paper

4. Medium Weight Crystal Clear Plastic
5. Spellbinders die, blade side downPaper or cardstock
6. Clear Acrylic mat

7. Roll through Big Shot

You will need to cut six pieces for the ornament shown below.

Today I will share two different ideas that I quickly put together today to show you how you can utilize these plastic snowflakes. We are expecting more of the Snowflakes in tomorrow, so please hang tight and check back throughout the day if you are looking for the snowflake design I used today.

Trying to photograph sparkly, clear objects is a tad challenging. I hope that you can see the beauty in this picture.

Being by reinking you glue pad. I always apply a fresh layer of glue, utilizing my teflon bone folder to spread the glue. Then ink your stamp. I elected to use this gorgeous medallion from the ornamental beauty set, but backgrounders and Scrapblocks would work extremely well!

You can view a picture of the plastic inked with glue below in the glitter section. Yes, the stamped snowflake is in on top of the silver leaf above. It was absolutely impossible to get a good picture, so you have to just trust me. This particular bunch of silver leaf has been used previously and so it is finer scale than what comes in the package. I always save the leftovers and put them back in a ziplock bag when I am finished using it. I placed a layer of silver leaf in my tray and set my snowflake, glue side down, on top of this mix making certain that all areas had silver leaf cover the adhesive.

Allow your snowflake to sit in this mixture until the glue has dried. It doesn't take that long, perhaps 15 minutes. I must admit that I cover my snowflakes and then walk away to do some work, so I'm not certain how long it takes to dry.

 

Then using an old bristle style brush gently burnish the surface. This is the snowflake before burnishing and...

after. To score these beauties be certain to work on the reverse side and follow the directions below. To complete the ornament you need three silver-leaf snowflakes and three plain plastic snowflakes. If you put two leafed snowflakes together you will lose the beauty of the stamped design.

This photo is to show you the snowflake "undressed", as you can see there are little plastic fibers around the edges. I just pull these off with my fingers. You will also find that the littlest of pieces sometimes remain intact. I use a good old-fashioned round toothpick to push these out.

Then using my bone folder as a ruler I use the smallest point on my stylus to score the snowflake. Using my teflon bone folder I then fold it in half, pressing it to make a nice, clean fold.

Using Glossy Accents, glue a clear snowflake and a silver-leafed snowflake together. Allow to dry. Then glue these three pieces together leaving one side open.

Insert the silver cord as shown above, string the chandelier crystals and bring the cord back up to the top side. Allow the ornament to dry completely before handling it. Check it for the next 5-10 minutes making certain that it is properly aligned firmly adhered all the way to the center.

Use the silver cord to tie your ornament to your tree.

Simple, old-fashioned elegance - what more could a girl want?!?

Well... perhaps glitter is more your style. Cut out your snowflake in the same manner and ink with the glue pad as shown above.

This is a view of the freshly glued/inked snowflake. I love the Martha glitter containers with the little "sprinkler tops." These tops are easily removed and the spout on the tidy tray fits perfectly back into the tops of these bottles.

Sprinkle the glitter over the surface and gently press the surface the snowflake to push the glitter in to the glue. Allow to dry for a few minutes. 
 

Remove from the tray and then using a very soft make-up brush remove the excess glitter. This is the photo immediately after removing it from the tray.

Yet another beauty to add to my color-coordinated tree :) If you haven't had the opportunity to visit my blog simple dreams and see how the Fantasy Butterfly Ornaments were created - here is the link. If you are thinking about adding a personal touch to your tree, gifting a friend with an ornament or adding a unique touch to a gift package I hope that you enjoy the possibilities that the medium-weight Crystal Clear plastic affords!

 

stamps: Rummage Bin Ornamental Beauty

ink: Tsukineko Essential Glue Pad

accessories: Medium Weight Crystal Clear Plastic, Silver Leaf Flakes, Chandelier Crystals, Martha Stewart Essential Glitter, Glossy Accents

BACKGROUNDERS Take Front and Center by Susan Roberts

Backgrounders aren't just for backgrounds anymore!  Today I've taken 4 different backgrounders and made wrapping paper for some cute little soaps (measuring 2-5/8"x1-5/8"x5/8").

It's so fun, so easy, and so fast.  I used printer paper, and it worked great!  How is that for economical, too.

These backgrounders are large and work best when mounted on a solid block.  I don't have an acrylic block that is large enough, so I just used the image side of one of my wood mounted backgrounders.  It worked like a charm.

It is easy to clean the large backgrounder stamp while on the wood block as well.  Then pull it off and replace it with another!

 

After stamping the image on printer paper, I simply cut it out and wrapped up the soap.

With plenty of paper to spare there was enough to fold over the end to avoid having a raw edge.  (I have actually cut off about an inch from the piece below before folding it over.  This means a larger piece of soap could have been used.)

After wrapping the soaps, the edges were sponged.

 

 

I added ribbon, art flowers, buttons, brads and more to the soaps.

 

Tags were made using the smallest Nestability die from the Classic Small Rectangle Long set.

I love having a few little gifts on hand.  These could be given individually, boxed together or even incorporated into a bow and wrappings on a larger gift.  Hope you'll give this a try.

Happy Crafting!

All stamps are from Cornish Heritage Farms.

Blue Soap Backgrounder: "Mini Triangles" Sentiment: "Botanical Bliss"

Yellow Soap Backgrounder: "Geometric Flowers II" Sentiment: "Botanical Bliss"

Green Soap Backgrounder: "Petite Pattern" Sentiment: "Silhouette Blooms I"

Lavender Soap Backgrounder: "Scalloped Lace" Sentiment: "Nature Silhouettes"

Butterfly on Tags: "Nature Silhouettes"

(Backgrounder Mounted on Wood Block): "Rice Paper"

Classic Christmas Part I by Debbie Olson

While I love stamping and coloring, sometimes it's nice to relax and create quicker beauties for the Christmas stash. Graphic 45's Christmas Past Collection makes it simple to create classic cards that don't look like quick cards. This week and next week I'll have a set of four cards made with the Christmas Past Collection and a few other common paper crafting accessories such as cardstock, Stickles, ribbon, foam tape, glitter pens, and rhinestones. I also used sentiments from Vintage Christmas Expressions.

I started with several sheets** of 12" x 12" Christmas Past paper, choosing focal images first and then backgrounds. I matted the images with either Memory Box Dill cardstock, or some metallic gold cardstock that I found in my stash. I also used some Ivory Silk ribbon to create most of my bows. 
**(Sheets I used were Jolly Old St, Nicholas, The Holly and the Ivy, Ode to Joy,Christmas Past Frames, and Christmas Past Tags.)

For this card, I chose a square format to coordinate with the square focal image. I added gold rhinestones in the corner of the image and used some gold metallic ribbon with my image

For this one, I added a gold-embossed "Christmastide" sentiment on the postage stamp image, as well as dotting the poinsettia centers with Stickles.

On this one, I used Ranger Glossy Accents to dot the holly berries.

For these little beauties, I trimmed carefully to accent the wings, and I used a Buttermilk Spica Glitter pen to add highlights to the hair and wing tips. (It's barely visible in the one on the left, but it's actually all over both angels.)

The Christmas Past Collection is such a lovely collection--perfect for adding to your stash. Thank you for visiting the CLASSroom today, and don't forget to check today's Ellen Hutson, LLC newsletter for a great sale this week!

Canvas Album Part One by Julia Stainton

I love making small albums to cherish the special moments of our lives. The Prima 8x8 Canvas Album just "spoke" to me the minute I saw it. The fabric is incredible, the possibilities endless and the 8x8 size is just right so as not to be overwhelming. 

The canvas album has a beautiful canvas cover and inside are 5 canvas inserts and 5 page protector inserts. 

 

Over the next few weeks I'm going to be exploring a lot of fabulous techniques and I hope you'll join me. Each page will be unique and you can create an album the same as mine or use it for a jumping off point for your own ideas. I'll give you a few more details on that at the end of this post.

I'm starting off my album with the first idea that came to me looking at the canvas album. Fabric is great for stitching on. My album is going to be a tribute album of my mom. I've been wanting to go back and do this for a while now and it's a wonderful way for me to remember my mom.

To start working on a page, first remove the canvas from the album. The album is held together with ribbons through the grommet holes.

I pulled out a gorgeous assortment of ribbon, twill and trims to stitch onto my page. Because I have small black and white photos and this page is of my mom as a little girl, I chose soft muted trims that really highlight the beauty of their textures. I then cut them to the size I wanted and laid out a design that I liked on the canvas.

The canvas pages are a stitched double weight but I was really impressed with how easy it was to stitch on my trim. I used a soft ecru thread and zig zag stitched the trim in place.

Now I know that some will have questions on the reverse of the canvas. Those stitching lines. I actually like the soft texture and pattern they add the reverse and don't feel as though they will take away from my design on the other side. If you don't care for this look, don't worry, I have a few solutions for you in some upcoming tutorials.

The last part of my project was to stitch on the photos and then embellish the page. The Webster's Pages Whimsy Threads and Silhouettes added just the right soft vintage flavor to work with my design.

 

If you're looking to get started on this album, start by gathering the photos you wish to use. Perhaps a heritage, baby, wedding or even Christmas album would be wonderful. If you plan on using old photos, I suggest you scan or have them reprinted. It's always a good idea to keep those treasured originals somewhere safe.

To give you time to gather materials if you wish to join me, I'll be posting the Canvas Album Part two Tutorial, two weeks from today. Over the next few posts, I'll be using some Studio Paint in a couple of coordinating colors, Multi-Medium Gloss, & Sticky Back Canvas.

Thanks for stopping by the CLASSroom and happy creating!

Vintage Advent Calendar by Sharon Harnist

Today I'm sharing a fun home decor project that can be created over the Thanksgiving break, to be ready just in time for the holidays ... a nostalgic vintage advent calendar! 

 
This new calendar by KaiserCraft is top-notch quality MDF board, so it's very sturdy and easy to paint and/or decoupage patterned papers onto it.  I did a combination of both AND found the perfect piece of Graphic 45 patterned paper to decorate it with!  I ADORE vintage Santas, so this paper was definitely calling my name!  Keep in mind, you can certainly customize it as you wish, if vintage Christmas/Santa isn't your thing.  I would advise getting two pieces of this Jolly Old St. Nicholas patterned paper if you choose to make one just like this -- just to allow for any possible paper cutting errors (I was certainly glad I had two on hand!).  You could also use this calendar as a countdown to the New Year, a monumental birthday, graduation, baby's birth, wedding ... the possibilities are endless!

 
The calendar is shipped to you flat and unassembled, but is easy to put together.  All the pieces are tabbed together and all you need to do is break/bend them apart.  I found the Tim Holtz Micro Serrated Scissors did a good job of snipping off those little leftover nubs.  The nice thing about it being unassembled, is that it's much easier to paint (I used Studio Acrylic Paint-Dash of Red) and adhere paper to each of the pieces when it's unassembled, rather than trying to paint into each cubby or adhere paper into corners that are difficult to access.

No instructions are included with the calendar and after I put mine together, I found this downloadable instruction sheet at the KaiserCraft site:  Advent Calendar Project Sheet.  One long, narrow piece of MDF was a little perplexing to me, until I saw the instruction sheet ... it can be glued into place on the bottom of calendar, to help it stand a little straighter/flatter.  Otherwise, it has a tendency to tilt forward just a bit.

KaiserCraft advises using a wood glue to adhere the grid pieces in place.  I haven't done that yet, since I found once the pieces were painted and/or a wet glue used to apply the papers, the MDF expanded slightly and the pieces fit tighter into their grooves after that.  If some pieces are a little too tight fitting, just use a small hammer to tap them into place.  It will be simple enough, though, on any of the looser pieces for me to go back and apply glue on the tabs and just fit them back into place.

Above, you can see all the great dimension this calendar has (you can click on any of these photos for a larger detailed view), with an inset shadow-box effect!  I hope to find some small three-dimensional items to place on the little "shelf", like maybe a sleigh or reindeer!  I adhered some Poinsettia Art Flowers to the poinsettias printed on the paper I used inside the box, to give them added dimension.

I decoupaged the inside shadowbox pieces of MDF with red Graphic 45 paper, Deck the Halls.  The outside of the calendar is decoupaged with Graphic 45's gorgeous Carol of the Bells paper.

 
The chipboard boxes are also shipped flat, but are already scored and quick to fold up.  I used a piece of tape to hold the corners together, and then cut a strip of paper 1.5" x 7" to wrap around and decorate the box (placing the seam on the back of the box, adhere with your favorite adhesive; I used a wet fast-drying glue).  I found a 3/4" circle punch worked perfectly to cut a notch out of the paper before adhering it to the box.  You could also paint the boxes or just leave them natural. 

 
All of the chipboard numbers are also included in the kit ... I left them all in tact on the chipboard sheet and just painted the entire sheet of numbers at once.  I thought this would be an easy way to color these, but as I tried punching out the dried numbers, the dried paint kept the numbers adhered to the sheet and did not allow the them to punch out cleanly.  In hindsight, a pigment ink pad might have been the better choice to color the numbers, or even airbrushing them with a dark Copic marker color would have worked better.

The small postage-stamp images from the Jolly Old St. Nicholas patterned paper sheet were the perfect size and scale for the box fronts (which are 1.50" square)! 

 
I embellished the boxes with gemstones, pearls, Poinsettia flowers, Dew Drops, and Candy Cane Stickles on some of the chipboard numbers.  Here are closeups of the rest of the boxes, 4-9:

 
Boxes 10-15:

And boxes 16-21:

This project was SO MUCH fun to put together -- I'm already in the holiday spirit!  And good grief, the Christmas season begins in just two weeks!  These boxes will be the perfect size to place small trinkets, candies, movie tickets, etc., to help my children count down to Christmas and help keep them occupied over the holiday school break.  I hope it inspires you to try one, too!

 
Paper: Graphic 45 Jolly Old St. Nicholas, Carol of the Bells, Deck the Halls patterned papers
Ink: Pigment ink pad, such as Red Pepper would work well
Accessories: KaiserCraft Advent Calendar, Tim Holtz Micro Serrated Scissors, Royal Coat Decoupage Finish, Studio Acrylic Paint-Dash of Red, Sanding Block, Stickles, Poinsettia Art Flowers, Gemstones, Medium Accent Pearls,  Mini Dot Creative Candy Twinkle Stickers, Flame Dew Drops

Custom patterned paper by Kim Hughes

All you need to create a unique piece of paper is a solid color, some patterned stamps and some ink...simple as that my friends.  Use one patterned stamp for "all over" coverage or combine them.  Stamp them side by side, over lap and layer.  Have fun with it!

 

Supplies:

CHF: Backgrounder, Fine Gingham, Backgrounder, Toile, Backgrounder, French Script,

Backgrounder, Wood Grain, Backgrounder, Lace, Mona Lisa Moments, Christmas Expressions PRECUT

 

Distress Ink Pad, Frayed Burlap (Ranger)

 

Ornate Book Plates & Fasteners

 

Martha Stewart Craft Punch, Classic Butterfly

 

Cut-N-Dry Stamp Pad Foam

Basic Grey Bling It Individual Rhinestone Squares, Nutmeg/Curry

You can use a scrap paper for a mask, just make sure that the scrap paper is larger than your base

Ink the stamp and press it, face down onto your base paper

  

and now you have only a portion stamped onto your base paper

 

Repeat this step...cover the wood grain pattern that you just stamped with a scrap paper, mask off the area to be stamped and press the French Script pattern onto the base paper.

I stamp face down, and place a larger paper on top so that it's easier to rub the stamp for even coverage.

And this is what it will look like once you have masked and stamped all 4 panels.

 

Stamp the sentiment onto scrap paper...the same size as the ornate frame

 

gently ink the edges so that it's not so "clean" looking.

 

Ink the edges of the base paper with a foam pad.  Machine stitch around the edge.  You can stitch before or after inking the edges...if after, add ink to the stitches to dull the brightness of the white (or simply use a more natural thread color)

 

gather your accent supplies..butterfly punch, some colored paper, a patterned stamp and ink

 

stamp the colored paper first and then punch the butterflies by placing the image face up so that you can see where you are punching.

 

Ink the edges and add bling to the center of each butterfly

 

I hope you have enjoyed this vintage-chic looking card.  Ellen carries SO many different patterned stamps and the CHF Backgrounders are great for covering an entire card front!  I am so glad that you stopped by :)

Masking and Misting Magic!

We are going to start by using the Martha Stewart "Snowflake Edger Punch" on some scrap cardstock. This is a very cute punch, and punches very easily through cardstock and patterned paper, I did find however that it did not punch through the tags, I tried multiple times and it would punch the larger items, but the small details wouldn't go all the way through. The tags are very dense and have a tighter composition than that of typical crafting papers, thus making it difficult for the punch to fully function.

Punch a few times, and set the larger snowflakes aside. If you are already using this punch for another project, just save the snowflakes and re-purpose them for this project.

Trim 1" from bottom of white tag and set aside for later. Stamp "Espalier Birds" by Memory Box onto the tag with "Walnut Stain" Distress Ink by Ranger.

After you stamp, sprinkle (or accidentally dump like I did, LOL!) "Clear Embossing Powder" and then heat set. This creates a great texture for our tag.

Now we are going to make our own shimmery, glimmery misting spray! I love Ranger because the products let you personalize to your taste, and it is so much less expensive to create these than to buy them already made. The possibilities are endless!

Using a "Mini-Mister" fill it two thirds full  with water (mine is a little too full, it was very hard to shake to mix the ingredients) Then add three drops (or color to your preference) of "Broken China" Distress Ink Re-Inker to the water. Then add a small amount (or to your preference) of "Blue Patina" Perfect Pearls  to the mix. Shake, rattle and roll, then you are ready to spritz!

Now it is time for those adorable snowflakes we set aside from the punch. Set them on the tag in random places, no need to adhere.

Now using your magic mist, spritz lightly from above until you have achieved the level of coverage that you prefer.

Let air dry or coax it along with the "Heat It" tool. When it is dry remove the little snowflakes, when I coaxed mine along, the little snowflakes came off on their own when they were dry, a good indication that it was almost done.

Stamp the Espalier Birds with the Walnut Stain ink onto the wood grain paper from the "Eskimo Kisses" paper by Basic Grey.

Trim around the little birds and with the "Quickie Glue Pen" adhere them to the tag. I love how these little birds look paper pieced on this, so sweet! And don't you love the shimmer of that mist?

Color in the little leaves of the tree with a marker. I used Copic YG67. Then add a small scallop to the bottom of the tag using the Eskimo Kisses wood grain paper.

Cut a few very thin strips of the wood grain paper and roll them around a thin paint brush to get them to curl. Thread through the top of the tag arrange them how you like them to look and then adhere them in place. Now it is time to get that bottom of the tag that we trimmed off earlier and stamp our sentiment using the "Vintage Christmas Expressions" using the Walnut Stain Distress ink. After you stamp, sprinkle the Clear Embossing Powder and heat until melted.

For card base trim the Eskimo Kisses plaid to 4" x 5 1/4" and stitch it onto a "Parsley" card. Adhere completed tag, the adhere the sentiment using "Glue Dots Mini" for a little lift and separation.

Thanks for stopping by to play today! I sure had a good time sharing with you!

B-

clear swing card by Cindy Lyles

 

Today's post utilizes Ellen's Medium Weight Crystal Clear Plastic and I've die-cut them using Nestabilities Labels Eight.

I began with Basic Grey's Nook and Pantry papers, and cut a few from Labels Eight.  For the card inside, you deserve the best day ever sentiment is from Hero Arts.  A beautiful, embroidered stitched brad will form the pivot for the swing card.

The largest die from Labels Eight was used to cut the Medium Crystal Clear Plastic.  Cut two:  a front and a back for the card.  The brown Nook & Pantry paper is the next label size down, and the two blue-green and white layers are the third label size down.

 

Distress Vintage Photo ink and an ink blending tool were used to lightly ink and age the edges of the Nook & Pantry patterned paper.

 

Both Vintage Photo and Antique Linen were used to age white cardstock to an authentic aged hue.  This is achieved nicely and easily using the ink blending tool.

Sentiment layer was aged with both Distress inks, and mounted over more Nook & Pantry paper to form the back of the card. 

The second blue-green layer is used on the inside of the top layer, to conceal the adhesive from adhering the top clear layer.  (I did this on the card back as well with another layer not shown, just to keep it all neat in appearance.)

The ever-versatile Happy Birthday sentiment is from Memory Box, as are the lovely Daffodil pearls.  Tamera lace was machine-stitched onto the aged white label prior to adhering it to the clear card front. 

Thank you for stopping by the CLASSroom today!

Back to {Background} Basics by Debbie Olson

For today's post I pulled out several of my Scrapblocks and decided that they needed some loving; I've been enjoying my patterned papers so much that they backgrounders and scrapblocks have been neglected! My mother-in-law needed a few cards for birthdays and encouragement; with that in mind, I chose:

Birthday Centers
Scripture Essentials I
Aged Sheet Music
Fine Houndstooth 
Perfect Plaid
Vintage Ledger
Vintage Text 
Antique Linen Distress Ink
Adirondack Cranberry ink
Burgundy Memory Box cardstock (I don't see a link today; it could be on order.)
Kraft Cardstock
brayer
Fancy Tags Dies
Petite Oval Dies
Labels Four Dies 
Embossed Curve Edger Punch

No wonder my desk is a mess! I started by stamping several backgrounds on kraft cardstock with Cranberry ink. The one burgundy sheet music piece in stamped in vanilla ink. You will get the best coverage on a background stamp, especially one with a smooth, regular texture, if you use a brayer to apply the ink.

 

Next, I cut the sheets apart and arranged them randomly to form card fronts. Since the color scheme is the same in all of them, they will coordinate--just have fun with them.  I also used an embossed curve edger punch to add some interest. 

Here I've attached the panels and sewed them here and there, mostly for looks.

I used various dies, all listed and linked at the top of the post.

Here is a close-up. I think these will fill the bill for my mother-in-law, and I certainly gave my background stamps a workout! Thank you for visiting the CLASSroom today.

Die Cut Ribbon Buckles by Sharon Harnist

 
Today I'm sharing a simple way to dress up your papercrafting ... custom die cut ribbon buckles!  Just about any shape will work and I have tons of ideas for these that I hope to share in the future.  I started out seasonally, with a pretty die cut leaf that can be used for any Fall occasion.  I thought this card would work well for a thank-you OR a Thanksgiving card.  Simply change the sentiment for a Fall birthday or sympathy card.

It's very simple ... just die cut a good heavy weight cardstock.  Here, I used Memory Box Vanilla Bean cardstock and Spellbinders Leaf Assortment die set -- the Nested Maple Leaf die set would also work well.  After die cutting, just punch two holes in the middle of your die cut:

and then thread your ribbon through the holes.  Told you it was simple!  But I think it adds a very elegant touch to this strip of Basic Grey Indian Summer paper on the Crimson Memory Box notecard.

Another simple detail to this card is the lattice punched top fold.  But sometimes your punches may not be able to punch through thicker weight cardstock, especially when it is doubled, as in the case of my top fold card here. 

The solution?  I just punched a single layer of the notecard and then trimmed it, leaving about 1/8" of solid, un-punched cardstock below the decorative punched edge.  Then I placed the punched strip of cardstsock at the top fold of my notecard, opened the notecard up flat and machine stitched the strip to the top edge of the cardfront! 

Note: Adding the punched strip to the top of your card will, of course, make it too tall to fit into your standard envelope, so just trim the lower edge of your notecard to fit the envelope.

Kim Hughes' Scripty Words stamp set gives you a lot of great sentiments that work well for this layout and many different occasions.  I stamped "thanks" with Memento Tuxedo Black ink.  And thanks to YOU for joining us today ... I hope this gives you some ideas on how to use your die cuts differently!

 
Stamps: Kim Hughes Scripty Words
Paper: Basic Grey Indian Summer, Memory Box Crimson notecard & Vanilla Bean cardstock
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black
Accessories: Spellbinders Leaf Assortment dies, Martha Stewart Arch Lattice edger punch, ribbon, sewing machine

Apron Gift Card Holder by Kim Hughes

Hello everyone :)  I am so happy to "see" you here.

I made an apron card quite a while back and I thought it might be fun to revisit it.  Serving as a card and gift card holder, this little apron would be fun for just about anyone to receive

 

Supplies:

Basic Grey 12"x12" Collection Pack, Nook and Pantry

Kim Hughes, Baked with Love

Adirondack Dye Ink Pad, Espresso

Fancy Felt, Buttons,Spring

COPIC Sketch Marker RV11, Pink

 

start by creating a stencil.  Of course the greatest perk to designing your own shaped card is being able to use it over and over again.  When you design a card with scrap paper, it's alright to sketch and make mistakes...get all the fine tuning done before committing to your patterned paper (you may only have one sheet, like I did)

I started with a standard 4 1/4 x 5 1/2" card base (that folds at the top and not the side).  I also made a pocket.  It's alright to fold it because it's your scrap "play" paper

when my patterns have a straight edge, I like to line up one or two of the edges on my paper so that I only need to cut the other two...this helps to keep the lines straight.  You will achieve much better results this was as opposed to tracing your pattern in the center of the paper

Trace the pattern onto the back side of your paper

erase the lines and you are left with a perfect card base with pocket.

I cut a thin strip of the paper for the strap, machine sewed around the edge and pulled out some fun felt flower buttons to add to the card.  I felt that the yellow was too bright, so I needed to dull the color down.

I chose a pink Copic marker since the paper color was a peach tone...pink and yellow make peach...perfect!

After the ink set in, I decided that I preferred the backside where the ink seeped through and showed off the faux stitches...I liked this look better.

Finish off this card with a gift card for Starbucks.  Who is also in the moos for some coffee, right now?

Thanks for stopping by, you always make my week brighter

Stamp of the Month, November

When I received the Webster's Pages Petite Pads I just knew I had to use the holiday version for this month's packet. They are absolutely exquisite and so fitting for the classic, elegant cards I love to create. As we continue to carry additional rubber stamp manufacturers I feel it is my responsibility to showcase how you can use each different style of stamps with this packet. Value is incredibly important to me and I want to be certain that I show you how to use as many of your tools and products together as possible.

In this month's packet you will find most of the basic supplies necessary to create the cards above. We are trying to give you the most for your dollars. Included in this months packet is a 6"x6" mini pad, together with the coordinating trims (which are absolutely gorgeous!!!), five different colors of Memory Box notecards and envelopes (2 of each) and of course you will also be receiving our little thank you, which this month is the antique gold ribbon yardage you see me using on the Brambleberry Wreath and Trumpeting Angel cards.

Due to the fact that this month I have created four cards this is quite the lengthy post, so stick with me if you are interested in knowing the finer details of creating these cards or seeing large sample sizes. Remember you can double click the images to see them larger.

One of the more complex combinations this month is the Lockhart, Holiday in the Window stamp together with this beautifully patterned paper. When coordinating a highly detailed stamp with decorative paper the best tip I can give is to color your image to coordinate with that paper.

I would like to suggest that you not be afraid to stamp these detailed images on to patterned paper and use the elements within the paper to your advantage. For example, I looked through the pad of papers and came across this beautiful neutral that had this darling pair of birds and immediately thought that they would look splendid perched on top of the wintery boughs in the stamp image.

In situations like this I ALWAYS use my Stamp-a-ma-jig to be certain to align the image correctly.

I begin by laying down my first layer of color using Copic markers. As typical I forgot to take a second picture as I colored my image - I apologize for this. I just get so wrapped up in coloring that I finish before I realize that I haven't snapped sufficient pictures. I will come back and add the names of the colors I used late today, but I am working from home tonight as I write this post and I have all the markers and pencils sitting in a cup at work :(

The next layers of color were added using Prismacolor pencils. As always I love the texture and depth that using these two tools together provides. I cut out the image and popped it up on my card front with dimensionals. Using a Sakura Clear Glaze pen I added just a little gloss to the berries and a Spica Glitter pen to add some sparkle to the boughs.

Initially I was thinking about using the image in this setting and creating a home decor element, but fortunately I realized that duh - I'm trying to create something for you to use with our special packet which includes notecards - LOL! I add this only to let you know that you can do so much more with these packets than only create cards :)

One of my absolute favorite images from the Memory Box release was this Brambleberry Wreath. It can be decked out so many different ways. In this case I decided to go with a very simple elegant look and add little "ornaments" and a little "snow" to the wreath.  

The punched detail on the right robin's egg and gold paper was added with the Parisian punch

I began by repeatedly stamping one of the three messages from the Hero Arts trio we have on sale right now, in Antique Linen. Then using my Stamp-a-ma-jig to once again determine my wreath location (I wanted the "Joy to You" sentiment to be centered in the wreath) I stamped it using Rich Cocoa.

MB Pearls, Icicle Stickles, ribbon and lace added the final touches.

I can't decide which of the cards I like the best. This is one that is high on the list. Perhaps it's the sparkle!

Beautiful frames are all the rage right now. Melissa Frances makes some of the more exquisite ones, but I don't have any so as all good paper crafters I had to figure a way to make my own :)

Using two sequential Labels Five dies I placed them on a piece of our Magnetic Masking sheets. These are ultra thin and do not affect the sandwich I use in my Big Shot. I use them to hold my dies in place so that they do not slip and misalign as I cover them.

I position my Craft-a-board and send it through to cut. One time through and I have several fabulous pieces for my projects ahead! The dimension that the Craft-a-board adds so much to your projects. If you have not tried it yet with your low-profile dies I HIGHLY recommend that you give it a try. You will be instantly in love with the possibilities!

Next using my ink blending tool and my cranberry ink I was able to easily change the color of the Craft-a-board material. My frame is now ready to be "glitterfied!"

I started with stickles and realized that just was not enough glitter for my liking - LOL! So I added Twinklets Diamond Dust on to the still wet, sticky surface and a little Smoky Quartz. Yes, I was a very happy crafter. Glitter a plenty!!! I allowed this to dry and then backed it with yet another one of the Hero Arts Trio messages which was stamped on Robin's Egg, distressed with a little Antique Linen and cut out using the same larger size of die I used above for my frame.

I punched a snowflake from coordinating paper and topped it with one of the fabulous Say it with Pearl studs. Simple, elegant and glittery - just the way I like it!

Last, but most certainly not least, is this gorgeous Trumpeting Angel. This is not the stamp selected by CHF for this month, but it was just too perfect to go with what I wanted to create this month. So... I have selected yet another stamp to be in our special section this month.

Stamping the angel using Champagne Versamark and one of my all-time favorite embossing powders (which should be in the store later today!) Tarnished Gold my simple layer of elegant paper received it's focal point. The Craft-a-board label that was left over from the project above became the perfect sentiment tag for my greeting. Punching a simple decorative edge and adding a bit of ribbon and this project was complete.

My hope is that these examples will give you a head start on your creating this month. It is that time when everything seems to get more hectic and for me sometimes that means the creative juices get a little hampered. Mix it up like I did or simply make a collection of your favorite example.

 

November Stamp of the Month Packet

stamps: Lockhart Holiday Window, Memory Box Brambleberry Wreath, Hero Arts Three Holiday Messages, Cornish Heritage Farms Trumpeting Angel

paper: Webster's Pages Petite Papers Home for the Holidays and Winter's Wings PaperPad, Memory Box Notecards - Vanilla Bean, Robin's Egg, Eggshell, Crimson

ink: Memento Rich Cocoa, Distress Antique Linen, Adirondack Cranberry Dye Ink, VersaMark Champagne

markers and colored pencils: COPIC - R11, R81, R89, YG63, E55, YR21; Prismacolor Pencils - Sand, Bronze, Henna, Mahogany Red, Black Cherry, Tuscan Red, French Gray 10%, Sepia, Chartreuse, Limepeel, Dark Green

accessories: Webster's Pages Home for the Holidays and Winter's Wings Trim Collection, Nestability Dies - Labels Five and Circles, Tarnished Gold Embossing Powder, Pastel Say it in Pearls, Sakura Clear Glaze pen, Spica Glitter Pen - Garnet and Melon, Martha Stewart Cornice Edger Punch, Parisian Edger Punch, MB Pearls - 24 Karat and Frost Blue, Icicle Stickles, Twinklets Diamond Dust, Martha Stewart Essential Glitter Set, Essentials by Ellen: Craft-a-board and Art Magnetic Masking Material, Stamp-a-ma-jig

Paper-Pieced Rolling HIlls by Debbie Olson

 

I had a couple of requests after my shadow box post last week to show how to make paper-pieced rolling hills; these are really simple and fun. I've chosen the Kim Hughes Heart Warmers stamps,perennially one of my favorite little Christmas card sets. I've combined those with papers from the Cosmo Cricket Jolly by Golly Mini Deck and used a few Copic markers in the process.

Next, (shown below) I cut random curves from the pattern that I'd chosen to be my snow. I try to alternate the curves for a more natural looking landscape. The pieces on the right are my scraps from cutting the pieces that I ended up using, though often I turn the scraps upside down and use them as well. Also, if I'm using a vintage paper, I usually sand the edges with a sanding block. That little edge of white adds one more visual layer.

Below, I have sewn two of the layers on. I stitched the top of the third layer, but I didn't sew it on since I want to tuck the snowman figure behind the top hill. Do you see how there is contrast between the bottom of the back hill and the top of the second hill? I sponged on a bit of Antique Linen Distress ink to heighten the contrast and make the top of the hill show up better.

Here I have added the top hill with a strip of foam tape, allowing room for the snowman to tuck in.

I wanted to trim around the stamped snowman, but I didn't want to trim around his stick arms. To get around that, I stamped the snowman image directly onto the snow layers. (I had to pull my bottom layer loose to stamp the snowman; I should have stamped him before attaching that layer. Thankfully, a few seconds with a heat gun softens most adhesives and makes removal easier!)

Pictured below are the Copic markers that I used to color the snowman. (You can click on any image to see a larger picture.)

Here is a detail shot of my finished card. Are you ready to go create some rolling hills yet?

Not all hills have to be stitched. The ones below on the left were simply sanded and attached with adhesive. The ones on the right are cut from felt and layered for a different look. At other times I have either straight-stitched the hills, or even cut them with pinking shears to give the impression of zig-zag stitching. I've also torn hills for added texture with no stitching involved. The sky is the limit--try something, anything!

 

Both of the above projects are ones in which I pieced rolling hills. You can click on them to go to the CLASSroom post in which they appear. Thank you for visiting the CLASSroom today!