I've got 'Cattitude'

Lately I've been trying to push myself to enter more stamping challenges and contests, and I've been reaping some rewards from my efforts. Yesterday I won a card contest at a stamping show and received $100 to spend at the show. A couple of weeks ago I also won the first challenge on the Raisin Boat blog. (I won with my spinning hamster card.) The winner was selected randomly, so I can't really take any credit, but I wouldn't have won if I hadn't entered. And as my prize I got to choose a free Raisin Boat stamp set.

Believe me when I say that I thought long and hard about which stamp set I wanted. Almost every evening for a week I looked at the Raisin Boat Web site, debating the pros, cons and versatility of set after set. I would decide on one and then change my mind. My non-stamping sister was even subject to my deliberations (and she was no help in making a decision). But I finally chose a cute set called Cattitude. I received the set last week and had a chance yesterday to make a couple of cards with it.

Supplies (all Stampin' Up!^® unless otherwise noted):
Stamps: Cattitude, Go Fish (Raisin Boat); Very Versatile (for inside greeting)
Paper: Crumb Cake, Whisper White, Cool Caribbean card stock; Designer Series Paper (DSP) Patterns Pack - 2010 - 12 In Color
Ink: Jet Black StazOn, Peach Parfait, Cool Caribbean, Crumb Cake
Accessories: Aqua Painter, Perfect Polka Dots embossing folder, Beaded Squares Nestabilities dies (Spellbinders), Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border punch, corner rounder punch, 1/16" hole punch, silver mini brads, Dimensionals

I love this image of the cat ready to catch a goldfish; it was actually what drew me to this set. I stamped the image on a piece of Whisper White card stock and then used an Aqua Painter to watercolor it. I was trying to decide which sentiment to use when I remembered the "Wish for fish" stamp from the Go Fish set. It fit perfectly under the image.

I mounted the focal point on a piece of die-cut Cool Caribbean card stock. (I used a 1/16" hole punch to manually make the holes in each circle on the die-cut.) For the background I embossed the card front with polka dots, added a strip of DSP with a little scallop trim and placed three silver mini brads in the lower right corner.

I like all the different circles on the front of this card. To bring a little of that to the inside of the card, I included a thin strip of the same DSP along the bottom of the inside layer. I kept the rest of the inside simple by just stamping the greeting.

For my second card with this set, I wanted to make something that wasn't cat themed, just for a change and to illustrate the versatility of the images. And the idea was one that I'd had before I even received the set.

Supplies (all Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted):
Stamps: Cattitude (Raisin Boat)
Paper: Melon Mambo, Whisper White card stock; Welcome Neighborhood DSP
Ink: Jet Black StazOn
Accessories: Plaid embossing folder (Sizzix), Pretty in Pink satin ribbon, 1-3/8" square punch, Tombo Mono glue, Dimensionals

You may be wondering, what does a gift-bag stamp have to do with cats, anyway? Well, the complete image has a picture of a little mouse in the center of the bag, and it coordinates with the sentiment "The cat's out of the bag." But for this card, I just carefully inked up the rest of the image around the mouse and stamped it six times: three times on Whisper White card stock and three times on different patterns of DSP. I cut out the entire images that were stamped on white, and for the others I cut out just the front and side of the bags. Then I glued the patterned paper on the white images.

After embossing the card front with a plaid texture, I punched out three squares along the right side. I adhered a layer of Whisper White card stock to the inside of the card and then used Dimensionals to adhere the gift bags to the inside of the card. (I kept the card closed to be sure I placed the images in the properly.) The final steps were to stamp a sentiment inside the card and then tie a ribbon around the card front.

There is one more blog challenge I entered in July (the SoShelli.com Creative Challenge), so we'll see if I can get a trifecta. I'll just have to think positive stampy thoughts!



Thanks for stopping by!

I'm a winner!

I don't normally like to have any focus on me (I'm much happier behind the scenes, thank you), but now I am going to brag a little bit. Today I went to a rubber stamp show and found out that I was one of the winners of the card contest that was part of the event. Yippee!

The theme for the contest was "A Walk in the Garden," and I submitted two cards, which was the limit. (You can see the cards in my June 9, 2012, post "A walk in the garden." The first two cards are the ones I entered in the contest, and the second card is the one that won.) When I arrived at the show this morning I looked for the entries and saw that there were some wonderful cards. There were twelve cards, and since two winners would be chosen, I knew I had pretty good odds.

I actually missed the initial announcement that I had won because I was in a class, and the sound system wasn't working properly in the room. But as soon as the class was done, I made a beeline for the card display to see if the winners had been posted. And I found a little first place tag next to my card!

After I collected my prize, put on a name tag saying that I was a card contest winner and had some "official" photos taken for the event, one of the event personnel announced over the loudspeaker that I had picked up my prize and if attendees saw me walking around, they should congratulate me. Hee!

So what was my prize? Well, here it is:

OK, so it doesn't look very impressive in the picture. But the little box was filled with one hundred of those cards. Yep, I won $100 to spend at the show.

What did I buy? Well, I admit that up to that point I really had been walking around the show doing a lot of looking but not much buying because I was imagining what I would buy if I did win the contest. It turns out my dreams were a little bigger than $100, but I ultimately decided on a magnetic storage system for Framelits-style dies, two embossing folders, two stamp sets, a package of small clear plastic gift boxes and a set of Nestabilities.

So all in all, I have to say that it was a pretty good day for me. Thanks for stopping by!

Movin' on up ...

Before I share my cards today, I have a quick note. I will be moving this fall, so for the next month or two I'm not sure how often I'll be able to post on my blog. I'm excited to have more living space (especially a craft room - yippee!) and to be in a bit quieter environment, but it's also really overwhelming. I have fourteen years' of accumulated things to clean, pack, donate and just plain organize. (It exhausts me to just think about it.) So I will do my best, but I'm just guessing I won't get to post -- or stamp -- as much as I would like to.

With that said, today I have for you two holiday cards using one of my new stamp sets, Jolly Bingo Bits, and the color combination of Baja Breeze, Basic Gray and Whisper White.

Supplies (all Stampin' Up!^®):
Stamps: Jolly Bingo Bits
Card stock: Whisper White, Basic Gray, Silver Glimmer paper
Ink: Baja Breeze, Basic Gray
Accessories: Snow Flurry die, Scallop Trim Border punch, 1" square punch, Postage Stamp punch, striped Baja Breeze ribbon, Dimensionals

I love these two big glittery snowflakes -- you really don't get the full effect of their sparkle in a photo. They make a simple but very festive focal point.

Supplies (all Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted):
Stamps: Jolly Bingo Bits
Card stock: Whisper White, Baja Breeze, Basic Gray, Silver Glimmer paper
Ink: Baja Breeze, Basic Gray
Accessories: Snow embossing folder (Sizzix), 1" square punch, Postage Stamp punch, Baja Breeze seam binding ribbon, Dimensionals

I have become obsessed with this clean and simple layout: a horizontal line of three small images punched out with the square punch and matted with the Postage Stamp punch. I made this card a bit fancier by embossing the background with snowflakes, using Silver Glimmer paper for two of the Postage Stamp punches and adding some seam binding ribbon.

Thanks for stopping by!

Not just for Christmas

When I received the Festival of Prints Designer Series Paper (DSP) stack from the Stampin' Up!^® Holiday Catalog, I noticed that several of the prints did not necessarily look like Christmas or holiday paper. So this afternoon I decided to make two all-occasion cards using one of those prints:

Supplies (all Stampin' Up!):
Stamps: Four Frames, Sweet Little Sentiments, French Script
Paper: Festival of Prints DSP stack; Very Vanilla, Midnight Muse, Riding Hood Red, Crumb Cake card stock
Ink: Midnight Muse, Riding Hood Red, Crumb Cake
Accessories: Decorative Label punch, Crumb Cake taffeta ribbon, Riding Hood Red pleated ribbon, Finishing Touches Edgelits dies, pearls, Dimensionals

See? They don't look Christmas-y at all, right?

I used one sheet of DSP cut in half for these cards. To make the focal image on each card I stamped the frame and greeting and then punched it out with the Decorative Label punch. I punched out a second label shape from colored card stock and cut about one-third of that label off the right and left sides. Then I glued those pieces behind the stamped tag to create a mat.

I used some ribbon and pearls to add a little embellishment to these clean and simple cards. I placed a pearl on the right and left sides of the Midnight Muse tag and on the top and bottom of the Riding Hood Red tag. There are also three pearls aligned vertically on the top right corner of the Riding Hood Red card.

Thanks for stopping by!

Tag! You're it!

I was a busy stamper yesterday. I pulled out three of my old stamp sets that coordinate with the Stampin' Up!^® tag punches and used a couple of stamps from each set to make a variety of cards. It was fun to see how well some of those older stamps coordinate with new embellishments, stamps or Designer Series Paper (DSP). Because I have six cards to post, I'll just list the supplies and a tip or two for each card.

Supplies (all Stampin' Up!):
Stamps: Tags So Much
Paper: Island Indigo, Whisper White card stock; Summer Smooches DSP
Ink: Island Indigo, Real Red, Lucky Limeade, Tangerine Tango
Accessories: Small and large tag punches, Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border punch, Itty Bitty Shapes punch pack, Chevron embossing folder, Island Indigo baker's twine, pearls, Tombow Mono liquid glue

To create the tag I used markers to color on the stamp before stamping the image. For each flower on the bottom I layered two punches, one glued flat to the card and one with the petals curled up.

Supplies (all Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted):
Stamps: Tags So Much, In Stitches Wheel
Card stock: Old Olive, Vintage Violet, Whisper White
Ink: Old Olive, Vintage Violet
Accessories: Small and large tag punches, corner rounder, Vintage Violet stitched ribbon, Old Olive polytwill ribbon, Blender Pen, white gel pen, Dimensionals, mini stapler and staples (Making Memories)

After I stamped the tag, I used a Blender Pen dipped in Vintage Violet ink (from the lid of the ink pad) to color the flower petals.

Supplies (all Stampin' Up!):
Stamps: Terrific Tags
Card stock: Crumb Cake, Very Vanilla, textured Old Olive, textured Real Red
Ink: Real Red, Old Olive
Accessories: Small and large tag punches, Itty Bitty Shapes punch pack, Little Labels punch pack, Owl Builder punch, Small Heart punch, 1/16" hole punch, corner rounder, Perfect Polka Dots embossing folder, linen thread

The largest heart on the tag was punched with the Owl Builder punch. I used several different punches to make the little tags hanging on the linen thread. The easiest way to do this is to punch the 1/16" hole in the card stock first. Then punch the shape around the hole (turn the punch over and look in the bottom to see where you're punching).

Supplies (all Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted):
Stamps: Terrific Tags
Card stock: Whisper White, Gumball Green, Pumpkin Pie, Marina Mist
Ink: Gumball Green, Pumpkin Pie, Marina Mist
Accessories: Small and large tag punches, 1/8" hole punch (Fiskar's), hemp twine, Simply Scored Tool, Dimesionals

This is a very clean and simple masculine birthday card. You could easily make it more feminine by changing the color combination, using ribbon instead of twine and adding a few pearls or rhinestones.

Supplies (all Stampin' Up!):
Stamps: Too Terrific Tags, Oriental Paintings
Card stock: Soft Suede, Very Vanilla, Baja Breeze
Ink: Jet Black StazOn, Baja Breeze, Pink Pirouette, Soft Suede (pad and marker)
Accessories: Aqua Painter, Baja Breeze seam binding ribbon, Essentials paper-piercing pack, paper-piercing tool and mat, color spritzer tool, Dimensionals

On this card I cut out the tag and the Baja Breeze layer by hand because I wanted smaller borders than what the punch created. I spritzed the background with a Soft Suede marker (it's hard to see in the picture), and I used an Aqua Painter and ink pads to watercolor the main image and tag.

Supplies (all Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted):
Stamps: Too Terrific Tags
Paper: Very Vanilla, So Saffron, Le Jardin DSP
Ink: Bordering Blue, So Saffron
Accessories: Small and large tag punches, corner rounder, Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border punch, vintage brads (Making Memories)

This is probably my least favorite card of the six; it didn't come together quite like I imagined. I used the So Saffron ink pad to apply ink directly to the edges of the card front and the tag. To attach the tag to the card front, I placed the brad through one of the holes on the Dotted Scallop Ribbon Border strip and then adhered the strip to the card. The tag isn't glued to the card, so it can be positioned straight or at an angle.

I hope you enjoyed all these "tagged" cards. If you have questions, leave a comment, and I'll respond as soon as I can. Thanks for stopping by!

Christmas color flip

Yesterday I wanted to make a couple of Christmas cards with the new Festival of Prints Designer Series Paper (DSP) stack from Stampin' Up!^® I chose one sheet of DSP that featured two colors (Cherry Cobbler on one side and Lucky Limeade on the other) and added a few stamps, some punches and a little bit of ribbon. Here are the results:

Supplies (all Stampin' Up!):
Stamps: Quint-Essential Flower, Merry Minis
Paper: Lucky Limeade, Cherry Cobbler, Very Vanilla card stock; Festival of Prints DSP
Ink: Cherry Cobbler, Lucky Limeade
Accessories: Merry Minis punch pack, 1-3/4" and 2-3/8" scallop circle punches, 3/4" circle punch, Cherry Cobbler seam binding ribbon, Lucky Limeade ruffled ribbon, Dimensionals, Glue Dots

I titled this post "Christmas color flip" because I just flipped the colors on these two cards; everywhere I used Lucky Limeade on one card, I switched to Cherry Cobbler on the other (and vice versa). I wouldn't have thought that these two colors would work together, but I really like them; I think Lucky Limeade makes Cherry Cobbler more vibrant, and Cherry Cobbler mellows the Lucky Limeade a bit.

I started with one sheet of DSP (4-1/2" x 6-1/2") and cut it in half to 4-1/2" x 3-1/4". Then I cut a 1-1/2" strip off the side of each piece and flipped it over to reveal the other print. For each card I adhered the DSP to Very Vanilla card stock (4-3/4" x 3-1/2"), added ribbon to hide the seams and centered the pieces on the card front.

For embellishment I used the Quint-Essential stamp and scallop circle punches. (I was inspired to try this by another Stampin' Up! demonstrator who commented on a card I had made with this stamp. She mentioned that she wanted to use this stamp on her Christmas cards, and I thought I'd give it a try, too.) I stamped the image twice in each color, punched one large and one medium scallop circle from each color and then layered them together. I adhered a Very Vanilla circle to the center of each flower and then added one of the stamped and punched images from the Merry Minis set.

There you have it: two quick Christmas cards. You could easily add more embellishment to these cards. I thought about adding some pearls or rhinestones, but I decided that I really liked the simplicity of them the way they are. Thanks for stopping by!

The bee's knees

With summer in full swing, I decided today to make a few cards that included images of bumblebees.

Supplies (all Stampin' Up!^® unless otherwise noted):
Stamps: Garden Variety (Unity Stamp Company)
Card stock: Whisper White, Basic Gray, Daffodil Delight
Ink: Basic Gray, Daffodil Delight
Accessories: Fun Flowers die, 1-3/8" circle punch, Perfect Polka Dots embossing folder, Frost White shimmer paint, Daffodil Delight stitched grosgrain ribbon, Dimensionals

I love the color combination of yellow and gray, and bumblebees are a perfect fit for that combo. For the background on this card I stamped the bees in Basic Gray and colored them with Daffodil Delight. For a little bit of shimmer I used a small paintbrush to add shimmer paint on the bees' wings. I die cut two flowers for the focal point; I embossed the larger one with polka dots and cut slits in the petals of the smaller one. I stamped and punched out one more bee for the center and adhered the flower to the card front over the Daffodil Delight ribbon.

Supplies (all Stampin' Up!):
Stamps: A Quiet Life
Card stock: Whisper White, Raspberry Ripple, Basic Black
Ink: Jet Black StazOn, Summer Starfruit, Raspberry Ripple, Gumball Green
Accessories: Vintage Wallpaper embossing folder, 1/8" Basic Black taffeta ribbon, Blender Pen, Frost White shimmer paint, Little Labels punch pack, Dimensionals

To start this card, I stamped the bumblebee and frame image twice on Whisper White card stock. Using a Blender Pen and ink pads, I colored just the frame on the first image and just the bee on the second (I also added shimmer paint on the bee's wings). I trimmed both frames around the outside edge and also cut out the inside of the image with the colored frame.

Using Dimensionals, I layered the frame over the image of the bee. I punched two shapes from the Little Labels punch pack out of Basic Black card stock and glued one to the back of each side of the frame.

To add some texture, I embossed the card front with the Vintage Wallpaper embossing folder. Then I wrapped a piece of Basic Black ribbon around the card front and adhered the frame over the ribbon.

Supplies (all Stampin' Up!):
Stamps: Botanicals
Card stock: Crumb Cake, Very Vanilla, Cherry Cobbler, Basic Black
Ink: Jet Black StazOn, Cherry Cobbler, Crumb Cake
Accessories: Adorning Accents Edgelits dies and embossing folders, Little Labels punch pack, Blender Pen, 1/8" Basic Black taffeta ribbon, pearls, color spritzer tool

For this card I used a collage style to stamp the images on Very Vanilla card stock and then spritzed it with the color spritzer tool and Cherry Cobbler marker. I tore the edges of the card stock and inked them with the Crumb Cake ink pad. For visual interest I adhered the stamped card stock to the card front at an angle and then layered a piece of die-cut and embossed Cherry Cobbler along the bottom of the card. I punched three shapes from the Little Labels punch pack out of Basic Black card stock and glued them over the edges of the stamped piece. For the last little details, I added a few pearls and tied a piece of ribbon around the card front.

 Thanks for stopping by!

Cards with purse-onality

I've been stressed  and overwhelmed the past couple of days with life, work and trying to make various decisions. So I decided it was time for a bit of stamping stress-relief (which would have been much more productive and restful if there weren't road construction going on about five feet outside my window). I made three cards that all feature purses.

Supplies (all Stampin' Up!^®):
Stamps: Perfect Match
Card stock: Whisper White, Basic Gray
Ink: Basic Gray, Real Red, Pumpkin Pie, Jet Black StazOn
Accessories: 1-1/4" circle punch; Chevron embossing folder; pearls; various ribbons in Basic Gray, Pumpkin Pie, Real Red; Stamp-a-Ma-Jig; Dimensionals

The stamps I used on this card are actually from an incentive stamp set I bought several years ago. (Incentive stamp sets are only available for Stampin' Up! demonstrators to purchase.) I think I've only used it one other time, so I thought I should pull it out.

This card is pretty straightforward. I stamped and punched out the purses and adhered them with Dimensionals to a piece of Whisper White card stock. I added some small ribbon flags to the left side of the panel and adhered it to the embossed card front with Dimensionals. I felt like it needed a little more embellishment, so I added a small pearl to each of the purses.

Supplies (all Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted):
Stamps: Carry On
Card stock: Whisper White, Basic Gray, Summer Starfruit
Ink: Basic Gray, Summer Starfruit
Accessories: Argyle embossing folder, Basic Gray satin ribbon, 1" and 1-1/4" circle punches, mini jewels (Doodlebug Design Inc.), Stamp-a-Ma-Jig, Dimensionals

This stamp set is a hostess set in the 2012 - 2013 Stampin' Up! catalog; unfortunately it isn't currently available because of legal issues. I bought it just in time!

I used the Stamp-a-Ma-Jig to line up the two stamps in the greeting ("Keep calm and" and "shop on"). I thought I needed some color with the greeting, so I used my Summer Starfruit marker to add some dots and dashes around the edges. But I'm not quite sure it works. Oh, well. To add a little embellishment I embossed the bottom part of the card with the Argyle embossing folder and then wrapped ribbon around the card front to hide the "seam" between the flat and embossed card stock. A few mini jewels add just a bit of bling.

Supplies (all Stampin' Up!):
Stamps: Weather or Not, Thank You Kindly
Card stock: Blushing Bride, Very Vanilla, Certainly Celery, Going Gray
Ink: Blushing Bride, Certainly Celery, Going Gray
Accessories: Scallop Trim Border punch, Itty Bitty Shapes punch pack, pearls, Glue Dots

These purses are all together on one stamp, so I used markers to color the individual purses before stamping them on Very Vanilla card stock. I layered that on a strip of Certainly Celery card stock, added a little scallop trim to the bottom edge and adhered the panel to the card front (after embossing the bottom half of the card with polka dots). I added three flowers to the bottom of the card, placed a pearl in the center of each flower and added one or two pearls on each of the purse images. The final thing step was to stamp the greeting above the purses and, of course, what happened? I goofed. Just as I was placing the stamp, I accidentally touched it to the card stock, leaving a little smudge below the N. I didn't want to remake the whole card, so I decided to leave it. I'll just send this card to someone who won't notice ...

Thanks for stopping by!

Moving Forward

This weekend I took a little break from Christmas cards to make some bright, cheery cards with the new Stampin' Up!^® set Moving Forward. This stamp set, which is only available in the 2012 - 2013 catalog, is not only adorable, but it also helps support Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC). For every Moving Forward stamp set purchased, Stampin' Up! will donate $3 to RMHC. What a fun and easy way to make a difference!

Supplies (all Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted):
Stamps: Moving Forward
Card stock: Whisper White, Tempting Turquoise, Rich Razzleberry
Ink: Tempting Turquoise, Rich Razzleberry, Old Olive, Pumpkin Pie, Basic Black
Accessories: Labels Collection Framelits dies, Festive Paper-Piercing Pack, paper-piercing tool and mat, Brights Collection glimmer brads, Pumpkin Pie and Rich Razzleberry 3/8" taffeta ribbon, Old Olive 1/8" taffeta ribbon, Tempting Turquoise grosgrain ribbon, Old Olive polytwill ribbon, Pumpkin Pie striped grosgrain ribbon, Polka Dots embossing folder (Cuttlebug), Dimensionals

This image is actually three separate stamps: the bicycle, the flowers and the frog. I colored directly on the rubber stamps with markers to make the multicolored images, and cut out the image with a die from the Labels Collection Framelits. I matted it with another die-cut and pierced a border around the mat. I added a glimmer brad to the larger bicycle wheel for a little bling and then adhered a few pieces of ribbon to the bottom for some extra color and texture. (This is a great way to use up those ribbon odds and ends.)

Supplies (all Stampin' Up!):
Stamps: Moving Forward
Card stock: Whisper White, Old Olive, Daffodil Delight, Pumpkin Pie, Rich Razzleberry
Ink: Old Olive, Daffodil Delight, Pumpkin Pie, Rich Razzleberry
Accessories: Labels Collection Framelits dies, Chevron embossing folder, 1-1/4" square punch, Dazzling Details, Daffodil Delight stitched grosgrain ribbon, Dimensionals, Tombow multipurpose liquid glue

To create the different colors on this focal point, I stamped the blimp image separately in Old Olive, Rich Razzleberry and Pumpkin Pie (and the bird in Daffodil Delight and Pumpkin Pie). I cut out a few different parts of the Rich Razzleberry and Pumpkin Pie images and adhered them to the Old Olive image. I again used the Labels Collection Framelits dies to cut out the image, and I added a little sparkle with Dazzling Details around the edge of the die-cut and on the banner on the blimp (it's hard to see that on the picture). For the banners in the background, I used the 1-1/4" square punch to create the points.

Supplies (all Stampin' Up!):
Stamps: Moving Forward, Perfect Party
Card stock: Pacific Point, Tempting Turquoise, Whisper White
Ink: Pacific Point, Tempting Turquoise, Real Red, Chocolate Chip
Accessories: Adorning Accents Edgelits dies, Cupcake Builder punch, Pacific Point stitched grosgrain ribbon, Real Red 1/8" taffeta ribbon, Paper-Piercing Pack Essentials, paper-piercing tools and mat, Dimensionals

I had fun creating a little scene with this boat image. To make the waves, I cut three pieces of Pacific Point card stock with the scalloped die from the Adorning Accents Edgelits. I adhered the first piece directly to the Tempting Turquoise card front and then used Dimensionals to adhere the other two layers. I stamped and cut out the boat image and placed it between two of the waves. I also added a few clouds made with the Cupcake Builder punch.

To finish the bottom of the card, I added a greeting on a piece of Whisper White card stock and then tied two pieces of ribbon around the card front. Here's a little confession: I first tried to stamp the "celebrate" greeting directly on the Pacific Point card stock after I'd already layered the waves. Not a good idea. I only got about half the image to stamp. Instead of scrapping the whole card, I stamped the greeting again on Whisper White card stock, pierced holes around the edges and adhered the card stock to the card front. And honestly? I think I like this better. It really helps to break up all the dark blue on the bottom of the card. So there really are no mistakes -- just opportunities for embellishment!

Well, there you have it. On these three cards I used all seven images from the Moving Forward stamp set. And, with the exception of a few neutral colors, I used only the colors in the Brights Collection, which I think work perfectly with this set. Thanks for stopping by!

'Ornamental' flower

I'm not always the most creative person when it comes to finding "out-of-the-box" ways to use my stamping supplies. But when I was looking at the new Merry Minis stamps set and coordinating punches, I kept seeing the ornament as flower petals. I wasn't sure how it would work, but I gave it a try:

Supplies (all Stampin' Up!^®):
Stamps: Merry Minis, Sweet Essentials
Card stock: Whisper White, Basic Gray, Gumball Green, Raspberry Ripple
Ink: Basic Gray, Primrose Petals
Accessories: Apothecary Accents Framelits dies, Chevron embossing folder, Paper-Piercing Pack Essentials, paper piercer and mat, Merry Minis punch pack, Itty Bitty Shapes punch pack, Bitty Buttons, Green Gumball stitched satin ribbon, Whisper White baker's twine, 1/2" circle punch, Tombow multipurpose glue, Glue Dots, Dimensionals

I wanted to keep this a clean and simple card, so I used a Whisper White card base. I added a strip of embossed card stock along the bottom and topped it off with a strip of Gumball Green ribbon.

To make the flower I started by stamping five of the ornament images with Primrose Petals ink and punching them out. Then I punched out a 1/2" circle of Whisper White card stock, coated it with Tombow multipurpose glue and glued the ornaments to the circle in a star shape. I stamped and punched out five more ornaments and gently curled them around my paper piercer to create some dimension. I glued the tops of the ornaments to the 1/2" circle, making sure to center each of the curled ornaments between two of the flat ones. For the middle of the flower I punched a mini scallop circle out of Raspberry Ripple card stock, tied it to a Bitty Button with baker's twine and adhered it to the flower with a Glue Dot.

I punched two more ornaments out of Gumball Green card stock for leaves and glued them to the back of the flower. I die cut a piece of Basic Gray card stock, pierced the border and used Dimensionals to adhere the flower to the die-cut. I stamped a greeting on a strip of white card stock, trimmed it into a banner, gently curled it around my paper piercer and glued it to the back of the die-cut. Then I adhered the whole piece to the card front with Dimensionals.


I'm really pleased with how this card turned out, and I hope you like it, too. Thanks for stopping by!

Frosty Friends

Today I'm going to share the final two Christmas cards I made last weekend. I'm a sucker for snowman stamps, so for these cards I used another one of the new a la carte stamps from Stampin' Up!^®, Frosty Friends.

Supplies (all Stampin' Up!):
Stamps: Frosty Friends, Sweet Essentials (inside card)
Card stock: Whisper White, Pool Party
Ink: Jet Black StazOn, Pool Party, Riding Hood Red, Pumpkin Pie, Lucky Limeade, Sahara Sand, Soft Suede
Accessories: Apothecary Accents Framelits dies, Paper-Piercing Pack - Essentials, paper piercer and mat, In Color printed brads, Snow Burst embossing folder, Dimensionals

This was a fun card to make, and it was pretty quick and easy. Basically stamp, color and embellish. The part that took the most time was probably piercing the holes around the edge of the die-cut layer. But at least with the paper-piercing template the holes are all evenly spaced. For the background I embossed a piece of Pool Party card stock with the Snow Burst embossing folder, which adds a great texture.

One of the things I like about this stamp is that there is enough space between some of the snow people to stamp them separately. That's what I decided to do for the inside of the card; I masked the ends of the stamp and inked up just the two snowmen in the middle. Then I just colored them and stamped a greeting.

Supplies (all Stampin' Up!):
Stamps: Frosty Friends, Petite Pairs, Northern Hearts
Card stock: Whisper White, Midnight Muse, Gumball Green, Marina Mist
Ink: Jet Black StazOn, Midnight Muse, Gumball Green, Marina Mist, Tangerine Tango
Accessories: Large oval punch, 1-3/4" circle punch, 2-3/8" scallop circle punch, 1/16" hole punch, rhinestones, Gumball Green stitched satin ribbon, Dimensionals

Speaking of stamping the snow people separately, that's what I decided to do for the second card. I inked and stamped the left, middle and right parts of the stamp then punched out the images with either an oval or circle punch. I added a scallop circle punch as a frame for the center image and punched a hole in each of the scallops.

Inside the card I stamped several snowflakes around the edges of a Whisper White layer and added the greeting in the middle. It's simple, but I like how it sort of mirrors the front of the card.

 I hope you've enjoyed my little parade of Christmas cards the last few days. Now I just have to get back to my stamps and make some more! Thanks for stopping by!

Clean and simple Christmas cards

As promised, I have two more Christmas cards to share with you today. These cards, which use the new Stampin' Up!^® set Merry Minis, are clean and simple cards with minimal embellishments and layers.

Supplies (all Stampin' Up!):
Stamps: Merry Minis, Sweet Essentials
Card stock: Whisper White, Raspberry Ripple, More Mustard, Wild Wasabi
Ink: Raspberry Ripple, More Mustard, Wild Wasabi
Accessories: Merry Minis punch pack, 1" square punch, Postage Stamp punch, rhinestones, Dimensionals

This was a very quick and easy card to make, and although it's simple, I think it's still eye-catching. I love having the punches that match these little Christmas images.

For this card I started with the same layout I used for two of the cards in my Single-Layer Simplicity post. The main difference is that I didn't add any embossing or die-cutting around the edges of this card. I thought about it, but I was really happy with the card as-is, so I decided I should leave well enough alone. I also kept the inside of the card clean and simple by just stamping a greeting.

Supplies (all Stampin' Up!):
Stamps: Merry Minis, Season of Friendship, Petite Pairs
Card stock: Whisper White
Ink: Chocolate Chip, Daffodil Delight, Gumball Green, Real Red, Tempting Turquoise, Basic Black marker
Accessories: Rhinestones, corner rounder

This is definitely not your average Christmas tree, but I like it. I knew I wanted to have these little ornaments hanging from a tree, so I went searching through my stamp sets and came across this one from the Season of Friendship set. The straight, unfussy branches left plenty of room to add the ornaments. I used a marker to add hangers for the ornaments, embellished the card with some rhinestones and rounded the corners. (This card was so clean and simple I didn't even need any adhesive!) For the inside of this card, I stamped the second half of the Petite Pairs greeting with one of the Merry Minis trees above it.

Tomorrow I'll share the final two Christmas cards I made last weekend. Thanks for stopping by!