Hello and welcome to the CLASSroom! I'm starting the process of moving, so I wanted to go ahead and get my August calendar ready for when it's unpacked. Since we'll be registering for school as soon as we get moved, I decided to go with a school theme:
Kim Hughes' Paper Smooches Clear Stamps Fruitastic and AlphaDot came to my rescue . . . I stamped the whole AlphaDot stamp set onto some Lily Bee Buttercup patterned paper with Teal Zeal Memento ink:
Next, I altered the original apple stamp by just cutting the face out of the middle. The face can easily be placed back in the center of the apple, or stamped separately in a different color, the next time I need it!
I stamped the apple with Memento Gray Flannel ink on a damask pattern of the Buttercup paper and cut it out . . . who says apples for teacher should only be red? :)
The apple stem and leaf were colored with Copic Sketch markers T3 and BG57. I also used the Paper Smooches AlphaDot stamp set to stamp the 2013 year with Teal Zeal ink on another (sun shiny) pattern of the Buttercup paper that had been die cut with a Lifestyle Crafts Labels die.
I used one of the strip dot stamps from the AlphaDot set with stamped-off Teal Zeal ink to resemble washi tape in the blank spaces at the top of the calendar. A "smiley face" (cherry, I think?) from the Fruitastic stamp set marks the first day of school in Cantaloupe Memento ink.
The calendar is Ellen's 2013 Ring Binder Calendar PDF Download (sized to 85% yields a printed calendar size of about 3.25" square), printed on Neenah Natural White cardstock and trimmed it closely. If calendars aren't your thing, you could easily use this same project idea/layout as a scrapbook page -- just replace the calendar with a treasured first day of school photo!
So don't be afraid to alter your stamps a little -- you just may find a totally different use for them than their original intent! And try using a whole stamp set to stamp a fun "patterned paper" type background -- either on plain cardstock or to enhance a subtle patterned paper!
While we're moving to a new city and getting settled next month, I'll be taking a little time off from the CLASSroom, but look forward to seeing you back here in September!
~ Sharon
{Supplies}
