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Let's talk monkeys! Love 'Ya Bunches was the very first United We Flourish stamp & die set and it is by our very sweet friends at Lawn Fawn!
Check out these apeeling projects by a barrel of talented makers (click on each little picture to see more)...
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The Pantone "Tech-nique" palette is vibrant and fun! We love Ellen's jewel-toned interpretation and we can't wait to use it in our cardmaking!!! Check out this gorgeous & cheerful card that Therese has created with Essentials by Ellen Rustic Botanicals, Altenew inks and colored pencils...
Check out Therese's video to see more...
Watch in HD on our YouTube Channel HERE! Thanks for sharing some comment love and a thumbs up with Therese there and be certain to subscribe to our channel for other fantastic videos!
We've compiled a list of these gorgeous colors in inks, markers, cardstock and more so grab your favorite floral dies and see what you can create!
Distress Oxides
Distress Inks
Pigment Inks
Hero Arts Dye Inks
Altenew Dye Inks
Copic Markers
Sequins
Cardstock
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Have you tried mirror stamping yet? It's great way to stretch your stamp collection, especially with those critter stamps! Heather breaks down a few simple ways to do it AND she has a bonus tip on how to mirror die cut too!
Watch in HD on our YouTube Channel HERE! Thanks for sharing some comment love and a thumbs up with Heather Campbell there and be certain to subscribe to our channel for other fantastic videos!
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Hello! I’m thrilled you are joining me here today in the CLASSroom! As a pet lover the new Dog Lady Leading Lady and Cat Lady Leading Lady images from the Essentials By Ellen collection are right up my alley! I decided to create two cards today featuring stenciled background scenes that perfectly compliment and showcase these new leading ladies!
For the Dog Lady Leading Lady background scene I stenciled Lucky Clover Distress Oxide onto a smooth white background using the My Favorite Things Drifts and Hills Stencil. The sky was inked with Salty Ocean Distress Oxide Ink and the My Favorite Things Cloud Stencil.
A greeting from the Dog Lady Stamp Set was stamped in the upper portion of the background and the Leading Lady, dogs, and accessory images were stamped on smooth white cardstock using Versafine Onyx Black Ink, colored in with colored pencils, blended with Gamsol and a stump pencil, then die cut with the coordinating Dog Lady dies.
Finishing details were added to the images with black and white jelly roll pens and a fine tip black pen.
The Cat Lady Leading Lady background was stenciled with Fired Brick Distress Oxide Ink and the Tim Holtz Bricked Stencil. The bottom of the background was masked off prior to stenciling and then the mask was moved to ink in a sidewalk landscape with Black Soot Distress Oxide Ink.
A greeting from the Cat Lady Stamp Set was stamped in the upper left of the background and the Leading Lady, cats, and accessory images were stamped on smooth white cardstock using Versafine Onyx Black Ink, colored in with colored pencils, blended with Gamsol and a stump pencil, then die cut with the coordinating Cat Lady dies.
The backgrounds were adhered to white top fold A2 card bases and the corners were rounded with a 1/2” corner rounder.
Check out the video to see more:
Watch in HD on our YouTube Channel HERE! Thanks for sharing some comment love and a thumbs up with Nichol there and be certain to subscribe to our channel for other fantastic videos!
Supplies:
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Embossing folders are a very cool & very easy way to add texture and interest to your paper crafting projects! I mean look how cute this card is! (Am I allowed to say my card is cute? LOL!)
I love a card with a good white background and I love the soft texture of the hearts! Plus how adorable is that kitty from the new Leading Ladies - Cat Lady set?!
Sometimes I want to add a little more color but the keep the simple, soft texture. I could ink the whole embossing folder...a cool trick I learned from Miss Julie (check out some of her awesome ideas here). Or I could do a little inking before I emboss...
I love this simple technique!
Thanks for stopping by!
Supplies:
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We are so excited to share our latest Essentials by Ellen release with you! This month we have two adorable new designs from Brandi Kincaid!
Leading Ladies - Cat Lady
Leading Ladies - Dog Lady
Hear a little bit more about these sweet ladies and their furry friends from Brandi...
Stay tuned this week for lots of fun...
And today, check out some of the awesome cards that our friends Elena Roussakis, Michele Ferguson, Carissa Wiley & Jennifer McGuire have created!!! (Just click on the picture to see more.)
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We are so incredibly delighted to welcome our friend Brandi Kincaid to The Classroom for her first guest post!!!
Brandi is the ridiculously gifted artist behind many of the Essentials by Ellen stamps & dies, including the Leading Ladies! And she is also a very talented maker who has recently discovered Copic markers. Today Brandi had created an adorable custom bookshelf card, using some of her latest designs that will be available this coming Sunday, February 4th!!!
Hi, Everyone! Today I’m sharing a sneak of one of, yes you heard me, one of the TWO (hooray!) Leading Lady stamps releasing Sunday, February 4th!
Some of my very best friends are Cat Ladies, so I knew I had to put some of the pieces of this set to work right away. Because I’m a newbie when it comes to Copic Markers, I’ve found that I do better when I color a lot at one time. The more I color in one sitting, the more my hand relaxes and the better it gets. I’ve still got so, so far to go, but I’ve found this really helps. Stamping a bunch of sheets of paper, coloring them in while watching a great movie (or two), and then cutting them out also gives you a big stash of awesome pieces to work with when you want to make a quick card. Plus, a handful of these adorable die cuts can make any heart happy.
For this card, I was inspired by two things: the amazing woodgrain paper, and the memory of seeing my friends cats being mischievous climbing all over their shelves, getting into plants, and hiding in any open box or bowl. After deciding to make a bookshelf and fill it with all my favorite stamps from this set as well as previously Leading Ladies, I decided to go against my usual solid white background, and make a little wallpaper for behind the shelf. I used Copic markers from some soft squiggly flowers, and these are the colors I chose:
These little blob of floral springtime were quick and easy, but also kind of fun! As much as I LOVE my solid white backgrounds dotted with stamped pops of color, a bit of something different is fun, too.
The fun part was deciding what I wanted to add to the shelves. I knew I’d have at least a few of the cats from the new set, but I also decided to grab some of the previous Leading Ladies and have them share some of their awesome accessories. Here’s what I ended up with: three cats, a potted plant from the Plant Lady, a bowl from the Baker Lady, books from the Cozy Lady, a fishbowl full of fish, and a sentiment stamped to look like it’s been framed.
For the fishbowl, I colored a piece of paper with Copic Markers, and used a circle die to cut it out. I trimmed both ends so give it a flat base and a titled opening, which meant it might look a little tipped, like the kitten was trying to get inside. I used the fish from the new set and those adorable tiny blue sequins to decorate the bowl, and because I was dying to make it look like a glass bowl, I grabbed a piece of clear acetate plastic from some packing and cut it to fit around the paper bowl.
For the bookshelf itself, I cut a rectangle and a few strips from the woodgrain paper, and made sure to add the strips, or “shelves” with foam dots to raise them up just a bit and make it easier to add the items later. Here’s the thing, if you love organizing shelves in your home, doing the same on a card is just as fun!
It was so fun to tuck a cat behind the plant, inside the bowl, and the one little guy who’s trying for a little midday fishing.
I can’t wait to share the full new Leading Lady sets with you, but until then, maybe you’ll start day dreaming up a paper shelf of your own, and what you might fill it with!
Supplies:
***The new Essentials by Ellen Leading Ladies - Cat Lady & Dog Lady will be available on February 4th!***
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Hello crafters! Today I'm showing you a background I created for the United We Flourish Better Together birds with masking and Copic airbrushing, behind a custom "stretched" frame I created with the Strands die!
(Click on any photo for a larger view)
Here's how this card came together . . .
The branch on my card was created by "stretching" the length of the 3" x 3" Strands die to 4.50"! Here's the die:
To do this, I die cut the Strands die towards the left center of a 5.50" x 4.25" panel of Neenah 110 Lb. Solar White cardstock. Then I slid the die over to the right side of the cardstock panel, flipped both over so I could adjust the die to where the die cut strands lined up as closely as possible to where the die would cut a second time:
Then I partially die cut just the right side of the cardstock showing above, by placing my top die cutting plate (shown above) a tad short of where the paper was already die cut, so you end up with this:
Then I chose one of the lower strands that (almost) connected the closest, and finished snipping the strand so it was continuous.
Then I just snipped away the rest of the unwanted strands, leaving my one long strand to serve as a branch for my birds:
Next, I used my Misti to line up the United We Flourish Better Together birds on an additional 5.50" x 4.25" Neenah 110 Lb. Solar White panel on which I had lightly traced my branch.
Once the birds were lined up, I replaced my die cut Strand "branch" frame on top of the blank panel and stamped the birds on top of both panels:
Now to add some color! I created a mask with wide Eclipse Tape and airbrushed Copic G21 to the lower part of the stamped panel:
I created an additional mask of the birds (here's where your Misti comes in handy -- just stamp the birds again onto your masking paper!), positioned the mask over the birds, and airbrushed the "sky" with Copic B21. I intentially airbrushed some areas a little darker, to create the look of clouds:
Once the masks were removed, here's what I had (pretty white birds to color!):
Then I had a ton of fun coloring the birds with these Copic markers:
Aren't they adorable?!! My homemade branch frame was colored, then the frame placed over the airbrushed and colored bird panel. I finished the card by coloring the two end bird's tails on the frame and added the sentiments.
I hope you'll try this die cutting technique, to stretch (literally!) your die uses!
SUPPLIES: ---------------------------------
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Today I'm sharing a NON-shaker card use for micro beads!
LINK: Watch in HD by clicking HERE. Thanks for giving us a thumbs' up and don't forget to subscribe!
I adore using micro beads as shaker card filler, but here are a few more ideas, in addition to the one demonstrated in the video:
Hope you enjoyed the project--micro beads are so much fun!
Happy Mundane! ;)
SUPPLIES:
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Have you heard about our United We Flourish campaign? Well, let us tell you a little bit about it...
In 2016 we began celebrating our 10th anniversary with the theme United We Flourish. What does United We Flourish mean? It means that our company would not be here without the amazing companies we work with, the designers who create stunning projects showcasing the wonderful products being created AND you, our fabulous customers! YOU are such a vital part of our creative community - you inspire & encourage us! Your response to United We Flourish was overwhelming and heartwarming. We heard repeatedly from you that you appreciate how our little company works together with the other manufacturers we carry to bring you their products and education showing how to use those products. To thank you for your constant support and encouragement, we have partnered with some of our friends to offer exclusive limited edition stamp & die sets!!! It is our goal to release a new set each month for the next few months. These sets will be available for a limited time (most likely 3-6 months) after each release, depending on how quickly you snap them up. The theme of these stamps sets are uplifting and fun.
We are so excited to share the latest United We Flourish set, Better Together by Hero Arts!
Hero Arts has been an important part of the Ellen Hutson LLC family since almost the beginning! Hero has a classic & fun style that always makes us smile! And they are true innovators, not just in their gorgeous designs but also in their business practices. Hero Arts is a certified green business and they make giving a priority, donating 100% of profits of special products to charity.
Today we are thrilled to be hopping with the talented Hero Arts design team to share our Better Together creations! Grab a cuppa and get ready to be inspired by this talented group! Then swing back here to tell us what you loved because two randomly selected commenters will win a $30 gift certificate to the Ellen Hutson shop! To enter just leave a comment on the Ellen Hutson Classroom blog by 11:59pm PST on January 28th.
Happy hopping!
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Heat embossing is a fun and easy way to add shine & dimension to stamped images! Check out the basics in this quick video from Heather:
Watch in HD on our YouTube Channel HERE! Thanks for sharing some comment love and a thumbs up with Heather there and be certain to subscribe to our channel for other fantastic videos!
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We are so excited to welcome a new friend to The Classroom today, the amazing Suzy Plantamura! We think you will flip when you see her amazing projects!!! Suzy does a fabulous series on her blog called "One Stamp, Five Ways" and today she has a bit of a twist on that idea for us with one color palette used three ways. Hold on to your socks people, they are about to be blown off!
And make sure you head over to Suzy's blog, Living My Dream, to check out more of her gorgeous work! While you are visiting her, show Suzy some comment love and leave a comment there before January 23rd for a chance to win a $50 coupon to use in our store!
Thank you so much for sharing your talent with us Suzy! We hope you can come back to The Classroom very soon!
I have had so much fun working on this guest blog post for Ellen Hutson and I can’t wait to share it with you all! I have three cards to show you with several different techniques to demonstrate. The first two cards use the new Strands Die in a different way than background dies are usually used. So let’s get started!
I die-cut two of the Strands Dies from the center of two pieces of 4.25” x 5.5” cardstock. I love that they stayed put after being die-cut as that was important to do this technique!
I started the first card with one of the two die-cut pieces by spraying the back of it with spray adhesive glue – it is removable until it dries, so once applied, you want to work quickly so it is still movable! I pressed the full piece onto the front of a white card base making sure all of the pieces were snuggly attached (by pressing down on each piece).
Next, I carefully removed the outside piece leaving all of the inside pieces in place. Some needed to be re-pressed down to make sure they didn’t move or lift. I used a gummy eraser to remove any unwanted adhesive that attached to the card base.
I used six of my Distress Oxide Inks on the background of this card with a Ranger Blending Tool. These colors were all inspired by the Color Trend Week color palette. I love that it made me think outside my usual color choices!
I rubbed the inks over the background of the card using all of the colors in different areas and letting some blend over others. This picture shows the finished result. I then lifted each of the little pieces from the die-cut.
Here is the finished result! I love how you can get more use out of your background dies by using them as stencils!
After the background was done, I used the new S’Whale stamps and dies. I stamped the two whales with black ink on white cardstock and colored them in with Copic markers. I also used one of the designs in the stamp set inside each whales body. I stamped the group of fish with purple and blue ink. I attached all of these images over the background. I stamped the sentiment from the set with Versamark Ink and embossed with Ranger White Embossing Powder.
I also embossed the waves stamp on the bottom of the card. You can see more of the detail in the whales in this photo. I used some glitter pens and a white Uniball marker to add some details and shading to them.
For my next card, I took out the second Strand die-cut pieces. I’m using it as a stencil again, but this time, I’m going to use the negative space. I sprayed the back of the entire piece with spray glue again and pressed it on to the front of a white card base.
This time I removed just the inside pieces of the die as you can see in this picture. I used Ranger Texture Paste and Distress Ink in Stormy Sky with a palette knife for this technique.
First, I took some Texture Paste out of the bottle and pressed the ink pad on my craft mat. I used the palette knife to mix the ink into the Texture Paste. I didn’t mix it all the way so it had different shades of white and blue throughout it.
I used the palette knife to apply the Texture Paste over the die-cut on the front of my card. I made sure it was smoothed out and then I put the leftover back in my container to use on another project. You can see how it looks once covered in the photo above.
I then carefully lifted up the die-cut piece leaving the Texture Paste in place. Be careful with this step to make sure you don’t touch the Texture Paste as it takes time to dry. Also work fast so you can lift it before the adhesive has dried.
Here is the finished result. Think of all of the possibilities using background dies as stencils with Texture Paste (in any color you want!). I removed any unwanted pieces of adhesive and Texture Paste with my rubber eraser.
To make the card, I used the new Arctic Pals Stamp and Die set. I stamped all of the stamps on white cardstock with black ink. I colored them with Copic Markers using warm shades of gray. I stamped the sentiment on the bottom of the card with black ink.
I arranged all of the Arctic Pals over my Texture Paste background. I love how the background of the card adds a soft texture for the creatures to swim in! My next card uses a different technique with the Celebration Lady Stamp and Die Set.
I started this card with a white card base. I wanted to use Distress Inks rubbed over the background to create a base for the party lady! This photo shows the ink colors I used. I cut a piece of cardstock in the shape I wanted my ground to be to use as a stencil.
I rubbed the inks over the background using a Ranger Blending Tool. I used the negative space from the cardstock piece I cut to cover the top portion while I created the ground with gray ink. I used the same inks to stamp the confetti pieces from the stamp set all over the background.
And now for the fun (and crazy time consuming somewhat difficult) part! I have to say when I started this card, it wasn’t my intention to go this direction. But I messed up coloring my first lady image, so my solution was to layer them so I could cover her face!
I stamped the lady three times in a light color of ink for a no-line coloring look. You can see the one I colored first on the far right with her smeared makeup (haha). For each of the three images, I colored the portions I planned on cutting out to use for my layered lady! I also stamped and colored the bag twice, the hat twice, and the balloon twice. I colored all of the images in with Copic Markers and added details and shading with gel pens.
This photo shows the pieces I cut out from each of the ladies. First, I attached the lady with her face and legs colored as my base. I also attached one of the balloons over her hand. I added the party bag that had the tissue paper colored. I stamped “Celebrate Everything” with gray ink.
Here is my finished card showing how all of the lovely lady parts were layered. I used foam dots behind the pieces I wanted to pop up, like the bottom of her dress.
This photo shows the dimension created with foam tape on parts of the image. The balloon has foam dots behind the top of it and then I glued the bottom of it down. I cut the handle off of my second bag and glued that to the top bag which also has foam tape behind it.
I glued the collar pieces down on the top and then used foam dots under the tips of them so they stand up. I used the last arm piece over the top of the dress with a piece of foam under her hand. You can see that for some pieces (such as her hair and her shoes), I glued them down directly without pop dots.
Whew – that was a crazy card to create, but don’t you think this adorable Celebration Lady deserved all of this attention? The colors from the Color Trend color palette are so pretty together and worked so well together on this card!
I hope you enjoyed my three cards today and that you are inspired to try out some of these techniques. Thank you so much for having me as your guest today Ellen Hutson! -Suzy Plantamura
Supplies:
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We love the new 2018 Color Of The Year, Ultra Violet! And we are having such fun using it with the Pantone "Purple Haze" color palette! Today Ardyth and Carolyn both have beautiful cards to share (just click on the pictures to see more):
Have a great day!
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The Pantone "Purple Haze" palette is full of lovely, rich colors and our new favorite, Ultra Violet, the color of the year! This palette feels soft but luxurious, perfect for winter florals! Check out this positively stunning card that Kittie created...
To create this card Kittie used Bazzill cardstock, the Altenew Leafy Garland, Impression Obsession Spring Wreath Set, a border die from the Pretty Pink Posh Stitched Borders 4 and the Essentials by Ellen Lovely set.
On the card front Kittie created a floral spray attached to a white background so all the colors would pop. The sentiment was a perfect finish for this colorful floral project.
We've compiled a list of these gorgeous colors in inks, markers, cardstock and more so grab your favorite floral dies and see what you can create!
Distress Oxides
Distress Inks
Pigment Inks
Hero Arts Dye Inks
Altenew Dye Inks
Copic Markers
Sequins
Cardstock
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Have you tried Liquid Applique? It's a super fun way to add dimensional, puffy snow effects to cards. Check it out with this quick video from Heather!
Watch in HD on our YouTube Channel HERE! Thanks for sharing some comment love and a thumbs up with Heather there and be certain to subscribe to our channel for other fantastic videos!
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Hello everyone! Amy Rysavy here to share a couple of cards with you using one of the new stamp sets and coordinating die set from Ellen Hutson's January release!
I used the new S'Whale stamp set for my cards. I first created a simple "water" background using some Dr. Ph Martins watercolors on hot pressed watercolor paper.
I heat embossed the images from the S'Whale stamp set onto more hot pressed watercolor paper, and watercolored them in with the same watercolors.
I then used the coordinating die set to cut them out.
The sentiments are all from the S'Whale stamp set, I heat embossed them onto black card stock with white embossing powder. The sentiments and the whales were adhered to the cards with foam tape.
After I had the cards put together I added a few Sparkling Clear Sequins from Pretty Pink Posh.
I finished the insides of the cards with more heat embossed sentiments, and stamped the little school of fish multiple times with Versamark ink and that was it!
To see how these cards came together check out my video below:
Watch in HD on our YouTube Channel HERE! Thanks for sharing some comment love and a thumbs up with Amy there and be certain to subscribe to our channel for other fantastic videos!
Thank you all so much for joining me today and thank you to Ellen Hutson for inviting me to be a guest designer! Links to all the supplies used are at the end of the post!
Supplies:
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Have you been wondering how Heather makes her awesome ink blended backgrounds? Check out her quick tips for making DIY stencils to use for ink blending:
Watch in HD on our YouTube Channel HERE! Thanks for sharing some comment love and a thumbs up with Heather there and be certain to subscribe to our channel for other fantastic videos!
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We are delighted to welcome 3 of our talented friends to The Classroom today to share their awesome cards using the January Essentials by Ellen release - Arctic Pals, S'Whale and Strands!
Check out the wonderful creations by Lisa Spangler, Jan Tink and Miriam Prantner (just click on the pictures to see more).
Thanks so much for stopping by and MONDO thank yous to Lisa, Jan & Miriam!
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We are so thrilled to share our latest Essentials by Ellen release with you! This month we have new designs from Julie Ebersole that are BRRRillant and fin-tastic! They are full of fun puns and adorable critters!
Arctic Pals
S'Whale
Strands
Hear a little bit more about these cold weather cuties from Julie...
Stay tuned because we have lots of fun things happening this week...
And today, check out some of the beautiful cards that our friends Karolyn Loncon, Sandy Allnock, Ardyth Percy-Robb and Jennifer McGuire have created!!! (Just click on the pictures to see more.)
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I love to add shimmer & shine to my cards and foil is one of my very favorites! As my sweet friend Carissa says, #FoilAllTheThings! Today I have 3 easy ways to add transfer foil without heat. That's right, no laminator necessay! And I also have a little sneak peek for you of Julie's adorable new stamps set, S'Whale (coming out on Sunday).
#1. Double-Sided Adhesive
This is as easy as it sounds!!! I sat down with my basket of "dry" adhesives and tested them all. Tape runners, foam tape, tape-tape... :)
My favs are Be Creative tape, especially the sheets because you can die cut it. And Glue Dots because they are just adorable! I recommend the Mini Glue Dot Sheets for easy placement.
For this card, I die cut a heart from Be Creative Tape, removed the "back" liner paper and placed on my card front. Then I removed the "front" liner paper and applied Lilac Foil. I burnished with a Teflon Bone Folder and ta-da! Easy peasy! And doesn't it make a cute background for Julie's sweet whale?!
#2. Two-Way Glue
Two-Way Glue goes on wet and after a short drying period (30 seconds to a minute), becomes tacky. The tacky stage is for repositional/temporary bonds but it is also perfect for transfer foil! I really like the Zig 2 Way Chisel Tip glue pen and the iCraft Deco Foil Adhesive pen.
To get the best results, apply glue and let dry for 30-ish seconds (if using the Zig pen, it will change from blue to clear). Apply transfer foil to adhesive and then roll through a die cut machine to transfer foil. The pressure really helps but you can get a more distressed & still very cool appearance with just a bone folder.
#3. Mixed Media Medium
This is one of the things I'm most excited about! Rebekah Meier Mixed Media Medium is new to the EH store. It is a great all-purpose adhesive that you can use to adhere various materials, seal projects and here is the most fun thing...you can use it to transfer foil!
Apply medium through a stencil or to a masked area. The medium goes on white and turns clear as it dries. When medium is clear & tacky (time will vary on how thick it is applied), apply foil and burnish with a Teflon Bone Folder.
The medium is also adhesive so try combining the foil with glitter! For this card, I applied medium through the Neat & Tangled Polka Stencil. Then to the white & wet paste on the bottom of my card, I applied glitter. I set the panel aside to become clear & tacky, and then applied foil.
And one more tip for using the medium...if part of the medium is tacky and ready for foil but part is still wet (because it is sometimes hard to apply the medium evenly), place the transfer foil onto the medium but set aside to dry more before burnishing.
Thanks so much for stopping by! I hope you have fun foiling something soon!
Hugs! Carly
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(click on the pics to enbiggan)
Hello, all! Today I'm here with a sneak peek of an upcoming set called Arctic Pals (releasing January 7th).
There are a couple of penguins in the set and this one was just begging to be made into a penny spinner/slider type project!
LINK: Watch in HD, subscribe and like on our YouTube Channel HERE! Thanks so much!
TIPS:
Hope you enjoyed this project and will keep your eyes peeled for the latest Essentials by Ellen Release, coming Jan 7th!
Happy Mundane!
SUPPLIES:
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The "Playful" palette is bright, fun and the perfect way to beat the post-holiday blues! We think it is especially fun for all the thank you cards that need to be sent. Imagine how happy these colors would make your friends & family when they open their mailboxes to find your sweet thank you?! Check out this thank you that Carly created...
To create this card Carly used Distress Oxides to watercolor cardstock. Then she die cut snowflakes with the Lawn Fawn Mini Snowflakes but any snowflake dies or even other shapes would be fantastic.
Carly also die cut a few snowflakes from a A2 white panel and then inlaid the colored snowflakes before adding more flakes on top.
Quick tip...to make assembling the card a breeze, apply Stick It to the back of the watercolored cardstock before die cutting the snowflakes. Then you can apply them to the card front like stickers!
We've compiled a list of these gorgeous colors in many mediums so grab your favorite wintery stamps & dies and see what you can create!
Distress Oxides
Distress Inks
Pigment Inks
Hero Arts Dye Inks
Altenew Dye Inks
Copic Markers
Sequins
Cardstock
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Happy Christmas! Thanks for poppin' in for today's fun event! :)
Advent Calendar Extravaganza is -the- festive event of the season! This ‘hop with a twist’ was dreamed up by Taheerah Atchia and features surprise destinations each day! Joining in the fun with Taheerah are ONE HUNDRED special guests - each serving up some fantastic Christmas inspiration! Just like an Advent Calendar, you’ll never know where you’re going to be visiting next until you ‘open the door.' And that’s not all! With 25 *amazing* sponsors taking part as guests as well, your crafty wish list is bound to get a boost with a chance to win a prize EVERY SINGLE DAY!!
Join in the fun every day at taheerah-atchia.com to see what special surprises await behind the door!
(click on the pics to enbiggan)
A super easy way to add a slightly interactive element to your card designs--I call it a "pop-in pop-up" surprise because it kinda pops in as you open the card and it IS popped up on the inside. :) A fun optical illusion, because it really looks like it's mounted to the card front!
The best way to explain HOW to get the focal image mounted precisely where it needs to be is to show ya', so I've got a video to accompany today's post!
LINK: Watch in HD on our YouTube Channel HERE! Please LIKE & Subscribe!
Easy, peasy, right?! Gotta love those!
It’s not a party without a prize - and with prizes every day there are several chances to win! Today’s prize is generously supplied by Ellen Hutson LLC, so you’ll definitely want to win! Simply leave a comment on this post - then head back to taheerah-atchia.com and leave a comment there too! You must leave a comment on Taheerah’s blog as well as here in The CLASSroom to be eligible to win! Don’t forget to grab the other surprise destinations from Taheerah’s blog and head over to them to leave comments there as well to improve your odds even more! You have until 23:59 EST on 31st December 2017 to enter.
Don’t forget Advent Calendar Extravaganza runs from 1st-25th December inclusive so make sure you visit taheerah-atchia.com every day for fabulous inspiration and amazing prizes every single time!
Merry Christmas!
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...from 3 ladies we love!!!
We are so very happy to have 3 of our good friends back to The CLASSroom today to share their gorgeous creations using the latest United We Flourish stamp & die set, Sweet Sprinkles by Concord & 9th!
Check out the awesome cards by Amy Rysavy, Kara Vrabel & Ardyth Percy-Robb (just click on each picture to see more and click here to learn more about United We Flourish)...
Thanks so much for stopping by today and MONDO thanks to Amy, Kara & Ardyth for sharing their talent with us!
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You can take a very simple die cut and give it a "layered" look by mounting different colors of card stock together and die cutting through the layers at the same time. If you don't have the exact color of card stock you need, you can fake it using Copic markers!
LINK: Watch in HD on our YouTube Channel HERE, and thanks for subscribing and giving us a thumbs' up!
TIPS:
Thanks for joining me today!
SUPPLIES:
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Have you heard about our United We Flourish campaign? Well, let us tell you a little bit about it...
In 2016 we began celebrating our 10th anniversary with the theme United We Flourish. What does United We Flourish mean? It means that our company would not be here without the amazing companies we work with, the designers who create stunning projects showcasing the wonderful products being created AND you, our fabulous customers! YOU are such a vital part of our creative community - you inspire & encourage us! Your response to United We Flourish was overwhelming and heartwarming. We heard repeatedly from you that you appreciate how our little company works together with the other manufacturers we carry to bring you their products and education showing how to use those products. To thank you for your constant support and encouragement, we have partnered with some of our friends to offer exclusive limited edition stamp & die sets!!! It is our goal to release a new set each month for the next few months. These sets will be available for a limited time (most likely 3-6 months) after each release, depending on how quickly you snap them up. The theme of these stamps sets are uplifting and fun.
We are thrilled to share the latest United We Flourish set, Sweet Sprinkles by Concord & 9th! For some additional inspiration be certain to visit our United We Flourish Ideas page.
Concord & 9th has been delighting us since 2016, when they became part of the Ellen Hutson LLC family! They have a fun & fresh style that makes us look forward to the 9th of each month, when we get to see each new release! And not only do we love their products, but we think co-owners Angie & Greg are super sweet! We love working with them and we just wish Utah & Washington were closer together so we could see them more!
With this yummy set you will find that there are cupcakes - and then there are cupcakes with sprinkles!!! Sprinkles make everything better! This sweet set will have you adding sprinkles to cupcakes, ice-cream cones and more! The sentiments will touch the heart of your recipient or wish them a happy day. Use the long sprinkle stamp to add sprinkles to your background, or create a border to frame your focal point. The matching dies cut out the images and also includes the sentiment 'YUM' along with some sweet heart sprinkles. This 4 X 6 set contains 11 stamps, 8 images and 3 sentiments along with 6 dies.
Today we are super excited to be getting together with the talented & sweet Where Creativity Meets C9 team to share our Sweet Sprinkles creations! Just click on the pictures below to see what everyone has been working on or start at Concord & 9th's blog to do the full hop. But before you go...there are prizes! To celebrate, two randomly selected commenters will win a $30 gift certificate to the Ellen Hutson shop and two commenters will win a $30 gift certificate to the Concord & 9th shop. To enter just leave a comment on the Ellen Hutson Classroom blog and the Concord blog by 12pm PST on December 26th.
Ok, go have fun & get inspired!
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Happy Saturday! Cue the confetti because we are hopping again today to celebrate the latest Essentials by Ellen release! Here's a little peek...
Have fun hopping with these talented makers!
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Hear the story behind the Essentials By Ellen Leading Ladies - Celebration Lady by Brandi Kincaid from Brandi herself! Check out her introduction and inspiration...
Watch in HD on our YouTube Channel HERE! Thanks for sharing some comment love and a thumbs up with Brandi there and be certain to subscribe to our channel for other fantastic videos!
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I'm Sandy Allnock - and I can't stop coloring! I got a sneak peek of the darling new United We Flourish Sweet Sprinkles stamp & die combo by Concord & 9th (which will be available this Sunday, 12/17), which is made up of solid stamps. What's a colorist to do?? Well, you get creative - and oh man, was this fun!
First, I cut out card fronts for my two cards - first the frosting and ice cream tops, then their respective bottom pieces - overlapping them so they meet up like a puzzle piece later. All this was done with Neenah Cream paper, cut to 4"x4".
Next, I put the first layer of Copic color onto each one of the pieces; I put a tidge of adhesive on the backs so they'd stay put on my scratch paper while I did my coloring.
The ice cream cone and cupcake bottom both have textures that can be drawn in - crosshatching for the cone, and stripes for the cupcake.
Before finishing those pieces I got distracted by the frosting and ice cream! Gah! Sugar draws my attention all the time. LOL! With 3 colors I built up the swirl shapes - they're basically "C" shapes at the bottom of each swirl delineated by the scallops cut by the die.
Now, back to the cone and cupcake bottom - adding a little more shading and blending. Don't overblend, or the texture underneath will disappear entirely.
Now for assembly: I put some scotch tape on the back of the card fronts and laid my pieces inside. After, I added more tape to the back to be sure they stayed in place well.
And then put dimensional adhesive on the back - I like it around all sides, and if it's a full card panel I put a slice in the middle so the card doesn't cave in during mailing.
Finishing touches: I diecut the little hearts out of scrap paper to glue on top with Glossy Accents. An alternate that I almost wish I'd tried: Diecut the heart sprinkles from the pink and chocolate pieces - place them back together swapped - so you have pink sprinkles on the chocolate cupcake, and chocolate sprinkles on the ice cream! A little glossy accents on top of them would be sweet too, to make them shiny.
The finished cards are so clean and simple!
Hope you enjoyed this little tutorial - be sure to hop along on the bloghop to see more ideas with this set; I have a video showing a way to use distress inks with them!
Sandy's Supplies:
The new United We Flourish Stamp & Die Combo, Sweet Sprinkles by Concord & 9th will be available on Sunday, December 17th!
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We are hopping again today to celebrate the latest Essentials by Ellen release and we are having so much fun! Make sure to check out this post if you missed our first hop and here's a little sneak peek of the pretty paper things we've got for you today...
Happy Hopping!
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We hope you are prepared to be totally inspired because there a 7 talented cardmakers sharing their amazing creations with the latest Essentials by Ellen release today!!! Here's a little sneak peek...
Aren't you excited?! Grab a cuppa and check out the beautiful work of these amazing hoppers...
And don't miss out...
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Welcome to Day 2 of the 12 Tags of Christmas with a Feminine Twist 2017! I'm so excited to be hosting day two and participating in this fab creative tag event that Ellen hosts yearly. If you've never created a tag then this is the time to get creative and join us for some creative time. Tags are so easy to create and they can be as simple or as complex as you like.
Today's challenge is one that immediately popped into my mind. Silver & gold, silver & gold... Pretty sure I've heard a song about that before and while it's a lovely holiday tune, it's also a stunning metallic color combination that is beautiful to create with. Here's a little inspiration photo I found...
Image via Pinterest
So beautiful, right? My challenge to you is to create a tag that incoporates silver and gold in it. You can be inspired by the above photo, or pair up these gorgeous metallics with other colors like I've done for my design. I always like to design with a feminine touch so I'm going romantic and pink for a sweet combo.
For today's tags you'll find that we are featuring MFT Stamps! One of my very favorite companies to design with and each day of the 12 days we'll be featuring a different company to share the holiday love. I'm excited to mix some recent releases from MFT, with an Essentials by Ellen set to make a sweet holiday door, complete with mail slot. Just because I'm not creating a card it doesn't mean I can't have an envelope!
So let's get started. First of all the tag base. I've die-cut it from pink card stock using the MFT Stamps Stitched Traditional Tag STAX. I seriously use this set over and over and over.
Next up is to create the illusion of a door on the front of the tag. I've used more of the same pink card stock and cut 2 - 1x1.5" rectangles and 2 - 1"x2.5" rectangles. Before adhering them I've sponged the edges with some Spun Sugar Distress Ink to help define them. I like to layer on a lot of embellishments and don't want this subtle detail to get lost in the mix!
The Mail Delivery Die-namics set is so adorable and works great for cards as well as this tag as there are so many fun and interactive ways to use it. I've combined both silver and gold foil card stocks to create a mail slot that really pops. Just die-cut from both colors of metallics and then adhere together.
The smaller rectangle in the set perfectly cuts out a mail slot that you can layer over top of. I've held it in place on my tag to cut out the rectangle using washi tape and then ran it through my Big Shot.
Here's how it will look...
Then adhere the mail flap on over top of the opening.
What's a mail slot without a little holiday mail! I hope you get lots this year!
I've created this tiny envelope from Crate Paper FALALA 6x6 Paper Pad and the MFT's Mini Mail Die-namics set.
I love Glossy Accents as an adhesive and have carefully used it here to adhere the envelope.
Since the theme is silver & gold...let's do snowflakes in both! The new MFT Let it Snowflake Too Die-namics has gorgeous classic snowflakes that look great die-cut from anything!
The sweet little envelope gets accented with one of these snowflakes and buttons and sequins from the 28 Lilac Lane Winter Wonderland Embellishment Bottle.
Julie Ebersole's Modern Christmas stamp set and dies get a vintage style makeover when stamped on vellum (see the holly) with Delicata Golden Glitz ink. This is my favorite gold ink as it's easy to use and has a gorgeous shimmer. When stamping it on vellum you MUST heat set it to keep it from smearing.
All those pretty snowflakes I die-cut earlier give this card a holiday feel.
Finally, some hemp twine and a hinge clip top off the tag while some pretty Maya Road Paper Flowers and metallic jingle bells finish off the embellishments.
I'm loving the gold and silver look! It's so pretty for the holidays and now I'm inspired to a) make more gold and silver designs and, b) pair up silver and gold for my holiday decorating at home!
So there you have it! An easy holiday door tag for the base and then lots of extra silver and gold goodies to bling it up for the season!
Thanks so much for joining us as we celebrate creativity and wrapping up Christmas! I hope you'll be inspired to create your own holiday tags and I wish you all the joy and hope of this beautiful season!
Julia's Tag Supplies:
We are ecstatic to welcome Keeway Tsao back to the CLASSroom today! Keeway constantly charms us with adorably colored critters and ingenious inking! There's no doubt that you have seen her beautiful creations for MFT, Neat & Tangled, Pretty Pink Posh and more. Make sure you check out her blog, Kiwi Koncepts, for more inspiration!
Keeway's Tag Supplies:
Thank you for joining us once again this year for the second day of our 12 Tags of Christmas with a Feminine Twist series! Simply leave your appreciation for the beautiful tags of today's dynamic duo, Julia and Keeway, and you will be eligible for the random drawing of the $25 gift certificate to our store www.ellenhutson.com. Leave your comment here before noon on December 18th to be included (one comment per person please.) Be certain to return tomorrow to see what our next team will have to inspire you!
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Hello! I'm so excited and very honored to be a guesting here in The CLASSroom for the Ellen Hutson December Watercolor Days. I've loved watercolors since as long as I can remember, in fact, I still have a set that I got at a drugstore when I was in high school. (Not saying how long ago that was...LOL!) Now I've graduated to The Good Stuff: Daniel Smith Extra Fine Watercolors – these paints are so good you all. I've upgraded my brush game too!
Today I'll be working with this BIG DaVinci mottler flat wash 30 and I have a bunch of techniques to share – this brush is just so much fun and there are so many things you can do with it!
Watch the video to see:
Watch in HD on our YouTube Channel HERE! Thanks for sharing some comment love and a thumbs up with Lisa there and be certain to subscribe to our channel for other fantastic videos!
I just may have gotten a little carried away LOL! Here are some takeaway tips about each set of cards and the techniques.
Bold Stripes
These are so simple and so fun to make and are a great way to get starting using a BIG brush like the daVinci mottler 30. For this batch of cards I used Canson XL paper and the colors in the palette are ALL mixed with Daniel Smith bronzite genuine – ah so pretty! The colors from left to right are: sap green, phthalo green, hansa yellow light, quinacridone rose, and pyrrol scarlet.
Takeaway Tips:
Here's a closeup so you can see it better!
Northern Lights Background Techniques
In this set of cards I shared tips for making aurora borealis backgrounds. Someday I hope to make it to Alaska to see the Northern Lights in person – until then I'll just dream and paint them instead. I put together a pinterest board HERE https://www.pinterest.com/sideoats/aurora/ for inspiration. I think these Northern Light backgrounds are a great way to play and have fun with color mixing and blending techniques -- they're so unreal looking that the sky is truly the limit!
I used Arches cold press watercolor paper for these as I found it really showed off the granulation in the Daniel Smith blue apatite genuine.
Takeaway Tips
Now for a few closeups so you can see everything better.
See what I mean about saving those scraps? Here I cut 2 Flora & Fauna icebergs from watercolored backgrounds that I didn't like, and then did popped some pieces into another iceburg that I die cut from gold foil paper. Oh and in case you were wondering, that star up there came from the Essentials by Ellen Concertina Tag set and it has a Neat & Tangled Like Magic sequin in the middle! :)
Look at all that granulation from the blue apatite genuine! Oh my. I kept this one clean and simple with the Flora & Fauna polar bear die and the peace from the Essentials by Ellen Holiday Words dies.
And this guy! Yeah I think he's pretty much my fave. I was just playing around with the brush – I love how random it is and I bet I couldn't make this again if I tried. It's the perfect background for that cute lil polar bear from the Flora & Fauna Arctic Starry Night set, right?
Dry Brush Techniques
This big daVinci brush is perfect for dry brush techniques! I prefer to use Arches watercolor paper for this technique as the paper has more texture so the brushwork really stands out. I used quinacridone rose and bronzite genuine on these – just can't get enough of that bronzite sparkle! :)
Takeaway Tips
Here's a closeup of the Holiday Cheer card. For this one, I used the Essentials by Ellen Concertina tags die to cut out a tag and then the Modern Christmas die set for the holly and the berries. I heat embossed the sentiment with rose gold embossing powder and then added some rose gold sequins to match. Love love love all that granulation on the holly leaves!
See what I mean about saving your scraps? When I don't like something I just save it and die cut it later, as I did with with the Essentials by Ellen Modern Trees. There's no pressure with watercolor – just play and have fun. Experiment.
And last but not least, a closeup of this clean and simple card, filled with Joy!
I hope you'll try some of these fun watercolor techniques with that BIG ole brush, and don't forget that Daniel Smith bronzite genuine really does go with everything! :)
Thanks so much for joining me! Lisa xo
Supplies:
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Hi there! Emily Midgett from Sixth Street Sundries with you today. I’m so excited to be joining in the Ellen Hutson December Watercolor Days! I have been dabbling in various coloring mediums for the last few years, and I have to say that the Daniel Smith watercolor line is by far one of my favorite mediums to use. And, luckily, Ellen Hutson has such a great stock of this line (as well as marvelous prices!) that I couldn’t resist making two different projects for today, including a video! Disclaimer: I am completely self taught. I have no formal training, so the terminology or artistic theory might not be absolutely correct. These are the techniques that I’ve found work best for me. One of the great things about watercolor is that you can just play around and get some fantastic results! This post is long, so get comfy haha!
For my first project, I decided to create a holiday card using the Ellen Hutson Mondo Poinsettia stamp and die set and the Exploring Watercolor set.
This set includes some great basics to help you start your watercoloring journey, including great quality brushes and paper, as well as some really versatile basic colors that you can use to create almost any color in the rainbow. I’ve created a video to show my process for creating this card:
Watch in HD on our YouTube Channel HERE! Thanks for sharing some comment love and a thumbs up with Emily there and be certain to subscribe to our channel for other fantastic videos!
In case you can’t watch the video, here are a few tips that I find extremely helpful when painting with your Daniel Smith colors: Layers. I’ve found that layers are an extremely important element of all coloring mediums. Because of this, it’s very important to have paper that can withstand multiple layers of liquid, which is one of the reasons I prefer the Arches cold press paper for Daniel Smith watercoloring. I don’t have to worry about the paper disintegrating no matter how many layers or how much scrubbing I do. Having good paper also helps because you can more easily manipulate the color, allowing you a little grace when trying to achieve your shading. Don’t be afraid to play with the shading or to go back in after you initially have painted a petal to add some darker color. Watercolor can be a very forgiving medium if you have the proper tools.
I have another card to share with you today using the Daniel Smith Essentials palette and the Exploring Watercolor set. For this project, I’ve included a few stepped-out photos to highlight what a difference adding that second (or third… or maybe more) layer of shading can add to a watercolored image. Here’s the card, using Ellen Hutson’s Mondo Peony stamp and die set:
I started by stamping and heat embossing three of the peonies from the Mondo Peony set onto Arches cold press using some white pearl embossing powder. I mixed three colors to create the custom pinks and purples for these blooms: Quinacridone Rose, French Ultramarine, and Rhodonite Garnet. To create the variations in shading for these blooms, I altered the ratio of red:blue. For the dark purple peony, I added more French Ultramarine; for the fuchsia peony, I added more Quinacridone Rose. (The Rhodonite Garnet adds some lovely shimmer and creates a pretty pink undertone to the final color. It’s very eye catching, but not a necessity.)
After I had created my custom colors, I painted the first layer of each flower. After those first layers had been painted, I went back to my custom color palette and added a touch of what I consider to be an “essential” color: Neutral Tint. This color is great for creating shadows and adding depth to your painted projects. I’ve used it here to add shadows, as well as to create the artsy backdrop for my floral cluster on the finished card. For the second layer of paint for the flower, I’ve added a touch of the Neutral Tint to my pink and purple mixtures to give them a grayish cast, creating a shadowy effect. You can see the difference that the second layer makes make here:
After I had finished adding shading to the flowers, I mixed up some Phthalo Blue and Hansa Yellow Light (both included in the Essentials kit) to create the green for the leaves. The Essentials color selections give a nice variety of possibilities, depending on how much of each color you mix. I could have made these green leaves more teal by adding more blue than yellow. These particular leaves were about equal parts yellow and blue. I arranged all of the flowers in a cluster in the corner of an A2 sized piece of Arches card stock, adhered them all with dimensional foam adhesive, and trimmed off any pieces that were hanging over the edge.
To create the background, I used the Round #12 brush included in the Exploring Watercolor kit. I saturate my brush with water, pulled quite a bit of Neutral Tint from my palette, and added it to the Arches card front, then cleaned my brush and saturated it again with clean water, putting the tip of the very wet paintbrush to the edge of the paint on the paper to pull the color out very loosely. I allowed it to dry, then stamped the greeting from Ellen Hutson’s Amazing Women stamp set onto some pale gray card stock using Altenew’s Purple Wine ink. I trimmed the greeting strips down and adhered them with dimensional foam adhesive. The final step was to add a few Sparkling Clear sequins to add some shimmer.
That’s all for my projects today! If you made it all the way to the bottom, thank you so much!! I hope you’ve learned a few tips from my meanderings in watercolor. I encourage you to play around with your watercolors and develop your own techniques. It’s so relaxing and SO fun! Thank you so much to Ellen Hutson for inviting me to participate this week! Have a fabulous holiday week!!!
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Ellen Hutson LLC is celebrating our 11th anniversary with a big blog party that has lasted all week! We have 30 amazingly talented makers hopping with us and creating with their favorite Essentials by Ellen sets! In case you missed it, here's are links to the hops from earlier this week...Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.
And here's a little sneak peek of today's hop...
Before you head out to hop, let's talk PRIZES!!!
Thank you from the bottom of our hearts to the amazing makers who have hopped with us to celebrate our anniversary! And thank YOU, our fantastic customers! We love you and we couldn't do this without you!!! Now, before we get even mushier, go have fun hopping with this talented group...
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