Hedgehog Ink

Fall Thank You Cards

2011-10-23T17:09:00.000-07:00

I haven't done much stamping lately, and I've been thinking how much I have missed it. If you want to see what I've been up to, you can pop over to my non-stamping blog here. I have become obsessed with knitting socks of late. I can't get enough of it, but I still need to make time for stamping. I was in desperate need of a few thank you cards, so I dusted off my stamps and my stamping table (literally), and got to work.

Paper: Papertrey White, Stampin' Up! Really Rust, Basic Grey Marrakech, Stampin' Up! Chocolate Chip
Stamps: Verve Abundant Blessings, Inkadinkado Birds Galore, Riley Sentiments
Ink: Stampin' Up! Really Rust, Pumpkin Pie, Ruby Red, and Chocolate Chip
Accessories: Kaiser Pearls in Chocolate, 3/8" Satin Ribbon in Chocolate, Gold Cord

The Marrakech paper is cut into 5 1/4" x 3/4" strips, with a space between the strips for the ribbon. I adhered the ribbon and the gold cord onto the back of the main panel, then tied smaller pieces of gold cord around the longer cord after the card was assembled. It's much easier this way than to actually tie the cord around the card, plus it wastes less cord.

I inked the bird stamp in Pumpkin Pie, then rolled the edges in Ruby Red before stamping onto white cardstock. The edges of the white oval are sponged in Really Rust, and Pumpkin Pie is sponged over the entire surface. Background is stamped in Really Rust on Really Rust paper for a watermark effect. The sentiment is stamped in Chocolate Chip.

Happy Stamping!

Guess that Costume Contest!!

2010-10-22T15:32:00.000-07:00

I haven't been stamping much of late. It was a busy summer for me and my family and I've been busy with a new obsession....knitting! We are in the middle of adopting a little boy, who turned 6 in the summer. That gives us 5 boys in all, though one is nearly 20 years old. Watch for photos of my knitting projects I've been working on. I'm also working on a couple of fun stamping goodies as well.

Now, to my contest....

In the above photo you see the complete ingredients for my Halloween costume. My hubby and I are attending a Halloween party tonight. I wanted something simple, and I have a quirky, "punny" mind. My costume will consist of everyday clothing, and the above two items: a tiara, and a Hawaiian lei. Can you guess what I am going as?

The first person to e-mail me with the correct guess will receive a nice goodie box from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts. Up to 5 runner's up will receive 500 free brads in my choice of colors. Get your thinking caps on and send your guesses to pinkhedgehogpapercrafts@gmail.com.

Good luck!

Satin Ribbon Blowout Sale!!

2010-03-15T15:18:00.000-07:00

Sold Out

2010-01-22T09:41:00.000-08:00

An Anniversary Card and a Dollar Spot Box!

2010-01-20T14:59:00.000-08:00

I've been a bit neglectful of my stamping in the past month or so. It's been a busy month around here. To see what I've been up to, see my other blog here.

I found these gift boxes at the Target Dollar Spot a few years ago. They had this one, a hot pink flowered one, and a lime green & black cheetah print one. They all have a stack of paper inside the boxes. The boxes measure about 4" x 4" x 1.5".

Paper: Stampin' Up! Lovely Lilac and Whisper white
Ink: Stampin' Up! Lovely Lilac, Versamark
Stamps: Aspiration (CTMH)
Accessories: Embossing Powder, 3/8" Grosgrain in Lavender ($.20/yd.)

My hubby has been on a business trip to Israel for nearly 2 weeks. He will finally be coming home on Sunday, just two days before our 20th anniversary. Israel is our second home. We lived there from 2003-2006 and grew to love the foods, the culture, the people, and the land. I've been pretty jealous of his adventure, even though he is working; this is especially true because I've been holding down the fort at home with our 4 sons, the dog, and a couple of cats. I hope I get some chocolate out of this deal; they have the best chocolate over there!! I made this anniversary card for my sweetie....hopefully he's too busy to take a peek at my blog this week. I know it's pink and he's a guy, but pink is my thing, so he doesn't mind.

To make the swirly piece of cardstock, I used a piece of the textured Coredinations cardstock, ran it through the Cuttlebug, then sanded the raised portion of the piece. The heart is stamped with Versamark and embossed in black, then cut out and mounted on a piece of black cardstock, then cut out again.

Paper: Stampin' Up! Pretty in Pink & Basic Black; Papertrey White (card base), Coredinations
Stamps: Soul Mates (CTMH)
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, Versamark
Accessories: Cuttlebug, Sanding Block, Black Embossing Powder, 5/8" Striped Organdy in Black ($.10/yd.), Black Licorice Oregon Raindrops ($1/jar)

Embossed Shimmer Snowman

2009-12-18T13:29:00.000-08:00

This card employs a technique called Embossed Shimmer. The technique was one of the Technique Lover's Challenges and you can find the directions here: Embossed Shimmer

In a nutshell, basically you smoosh Lumiere paint and ink around on one side of acetate, wait for it to dry, then run it through an embossing folder, and what you end up with is this wonderfully shimmery, shiny piece of acetate. The paint/ink side of the acetate goes face down, so you are left with the nice shiny side facing out. I love this technique. It's very easy, and except for the waiting time, doesn't take very long either. It's also very impressive!

Stamps: Unity Kissmas and Mistletoe
Ink: Versamark, SU Orchid Opulence and Taken with Teal refills
Paper: SU Whisper White, Taken with Teal, Acetate
Accessories: Lumiere Pearl White paint, Satin Ribbon, Kaiser Rhinestones, Nestabilities, Silver Embossing Powder, Silver Cord

Limited Supply RAK Challenge

2009-11-06T20:54:00.000-08:00

The limited supply challenge today was to make a Christmas card and send it as a random act of kindness to someone. I chose to send it to a little boy who is dying of cancer and will not live until Christmas. He is 5 and his name is Noah. His family is having an early Christmas and his one wish is to get lots of cards in the mail. They told us about his story on SCS today and I had a strong desire to make a special card just for him. I thought this stamp would bring a smile to his face because it always brings a smile to mine!

Paper: PTI White and Chocolate; SU Dusty Durango & Frosty Days
Stamps: House Mouse, Take a Bough (PTI)
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black
Accessories: 5/8" Grosgrain and Chocolate Pearls from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts, Prismacolor Pencils and Gamsol, Art Deco Glistening Snow Writer, SU Glitter

If you want to send him a card, hand stamped or not, here is the address:

Noah Biorkman
1141 Fountain View Circle
South Lyon, MI48178

It's a Three Challenge Day!

2009-11-04T16:27:00.000-08:00

This card is for the Embellish Magazine challenge, and also the SCS Sketch challenge for today.

Paper: Basic Grey Archaic; SU Cameo Coral, Mellow Moss, Whisper White, and Chocolate Chip
Stamps: Wise Owl (PTI), CHF background
Ink: Chocolate Chip, Memento Tuxedo Black
Accessories: Chocolate Brads, 7/8" Chocolate Organdy, Nestabilities, Sponge, Prismacolor Pencils & Gamsol

This card is for The Cat's Pajamas challenge this week. I used some Cuttlebug dies to cut the leaves out of a soda pop bottle! It was hard to photograph, and in person it's even more stunning.

Paper: SU Basic Black, Basic Grey Indian Summer
Stamps: PTI Mixed Messages
Ink: Basic Black
Accessories: Gold Cord, Gold Brad, Cuttlebug Dies, Soda Bottle

I need a thank-you card for our local firefighters who gave a tour of the firehouse to our Wolf Cub Scouts. Of course, since they are men, I didn't want to give them something feminine. I got this Firefighter Riley a while ago in anticipation of this event. It's hard to photograph the details....I added Crystal Effects to the water, and to simulate the reflective stripes on the uniform, I colored them first with Prismacolor Pencils and Gamsol, then with a Sakura Stardust pen. It looks soooo cool in person!

Paper: East Coast Prep, Real Red, Tempting Turquoise, Whisper White (all SU)
Stamps: Riley (Hanna Stamps), Much Appreciated (SU)
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, SU Tempting Turquoise
Accessoried: Fire Engine Buttons, Prismacolor Pencils & Gamsol, 1/2" Circle Punch, Sakura Stardust Pen, Crystal Effects, Nestabilities

Verve Monday Mojo and SCS Color Challenge

2009-11-03T23:03:00.000-08:00

Two challenges with one card tonight. Time for a shaker card, I think. Shaker cards are irresistible! Nobody who sees one can keep themselves from picking it up and shaking it. We all turn into little kids around these things!

I turned Verve's bird into a Christmas Cardinal. I love these birdies that Julee designed. There are three sets with birds in them and they are all just adorable. This card is for two of this week's challenges. I'm a bit behind, so I'm playing catch up.

Paper: SU Basic Black, PTI White, The Story of Us (ATD)
Ink: SU Real Red
Stamps: Anniversary Birds (Verve), Take a Bough (PTI)
Accessories: Kaiser Rhinestones, 7/8" Satin Ribbon, window sheet, Nestabilities, microbeads and tiny star confetti

Cupcake Inspiration Challenge

2009-11-03T17:02:00.000-08:00

Love this cupcake challenge! I love ladybugs, they just make me happy!!!

The sentiment is actually a straight stamp, but I made it wavy on the clear block before stamping. I did it partly to fit the space and partly because I didn't want to mess with placing it on the blog in a straight line. If in doubt, make it crooked on purpose!!

Card Deets:

Stamps: Little Lady (PTI)
Paper: SU Real Red, Basic Black, Whisper White, PTI patterned paper
Ink: Real Red, Basic Black
Accessories: SU corner punch, Angel's Landing piercing template, Polka Dot Grosgrain Ribbon

Snowman Treat Box Tutorial

2009-11-01T22:40:00.000-08:00

Sorry, snowman treat box pattern is out for publication.

MTSC45 and The Cat's Pajamas Challenges

2009-10-31T15:52:00.000-07:00

I don't have much time to type, I really need to be on the way out the door, but wanted to get these two cards posted.

The first card is for Mercy's Tuesday Sketch this week and for the Color Combo Sketch on SCS. Stamps are from Verve, striped organdy ribbon, button, and string are from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts. Paper colors are Kraft, Black, and Melon Mambo.

This card is for The Cat's Pajamas color challenge this week, and for the CAS challenge on SCS. The CAS challenge was for ways to use brads. I put brads on the lowest snowflakes on the ornaments and next to the sentiment. The papers are Soft Sky, Basic Black, and Taken with Teal. Brads are made to match and available at Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts, as are the 1/8" organdy ribbons. Love those tiny ribbons for making tiny bows!!

Advent Calendar Tutorial

2009-10-30T14:05:00.000-07:00

I made some ornaments using tins last week, and for some reason this idea started developing in my head to use them on an advent calendar. I remembered a cheap silver metal pizza pan I had when we were in college. It was seriously a piece of junk, but it would be perfect for this project. Sadly, as soon as we had a decent income, the pizza pans went down the long road to the scrap heap. I set out on a quest yesterday to find some cheap pizza pans and it turned into a very long quest indeed. I thought the dollar store might be the perfect place to find one, but I was wrong. I hit every store there was along my route, and still had no luck until I went into Target.....Score!!! Lucky me.....and, the best part? They were only $2.99....yahoo!!!

A couple more notes: Some of the tin lids fit loosely, so when I fill the tins with candy, I plan to tape them shut until we open them. This project is also heavy, so it will require a sturdy picture hanger to hold it up, especially when it is filled with treats.

Here is the finished project. It's not the best photo, but the light is gloomy here in rainy Oregon, and it's hard to get a good daylight photo to avoid the flash glaring off of the pizza pan. This is the best I could do. I used the 2" tins for each of the first 24 days of Christmas and a 3" tin for Christmas morning.

I thought of many variations I could have used. I was tempted to cover the main part of the pan with patterned paper, but I would have to deal with a seam, which did not appeal to me. The pan is a 15" pizza pan, but is actually more than 15" across, so the flat bottom of the pan is larger than 12", which is the largest paper I have. I opted to stick with the silver, which is a nice finish anyway.

A photo of the pizza pan. It was in the baking section at Target. They only had 4 of them at the closest Target to me and of course I bought them all. So, if you live locally, don't bother going to the Target at Sunset Esplanade....LOL.

My sweetheart handy hubby was given the task of making holes in the pan. He headed out to his shop and this is what came back. I wanted the holes about 1/2" from the sloped side of the pan and about 1" apart. He said he just used a regular drill, and the holes were smooth enough that they did not snag the satin ribbon I later pulled through them.

Here is the layout I went with. I left a space at the top for a bow. There are 14 tins on the outer layer, 10 on the inner, with a space in the center for the large tin for Christmas day.

I did some testing to make sure my magnets would hold up the tins. I used these self-adhesive business card sized magnets. I normally use these to keep my Nesties in their CD cases, but it worked well for this project also.

I cut each magnet in eights and used that size for the small tins. I used half of a magnet for the large tin.

The bottom of a small tin with 1/8 of a magnet. Self-adhesive is a bonus!

I used Verve's Winter Wonder to stamp borders in three colors: Taken With Teal, Ballet Blue, and Lovely Lilac. I stamped 24 in all and then headed for the cuttlebug.

I die cut the frames into circles and made larger scalloped circles in shades of teal, blue, and purple to mat the white circles. I cut one larger circle to go under the large tin.

I stamped more borders in black onto cardstock in the same shades as my ink. I will use these circles to write Christmas activities for us to do each day as we open the tin.

Next, I cut circles small enough to fit inside the tins and stamped an assortment of Christmas images on each circle. I suppose I could have taken the time to find 24 different images, but since I was feeling a little lazy at this point, I used only 8 images, making 3 of each one. I may go back and change them so there is an "surprise" on each day, wondering what the picture in the bottom of the tin will be.

Images used are:

Riley (Hanna Stamps)
Snow Wonderful, Poinsettia Christmas (Verve)
Christmas Fishy (CHF)
Winter Blast (MFT)
Elzybells (Amuse)
Wings of Joy (Taylored Expressions)
Jolly Little Winter (Unity)

Next, I adhered the circles in the bottom of the tin. The main adhesive I used in the whole project is ATG. If you do not have an ATG, I would suggest using Sticky Strip or red line tape.

To tie the bow at the top, I threaded teal ribbon through both holes from the back, then tied a knot and left long tails. I then tied a bow using purple satin ribbon over the knot in the teal ribbon. This gave me two different colors of tails. I may actually make a big poofy bow with lots of loops, but since we are a house of boys, I thought putting this much ribbon on a project was already pushing it. LOL

I stamped the numbers (retired SU set called Newsprint Numbers) onto the circles and adhered the whole mess together, and the circles to the pizza pan using ATG. Once upon a time I was addicted to alphabet stamp sets, so I have bunches of them kicking around. I'm surprised at how often they come in handy. I started with the numbering at the top left and went around the outside counter clockwise, then did the inner circle clockwise, ending up back on the left side.

It was a little tricky coming up with a tiny tag for the numbering on the tins themselves. I tried so many things, but everything was just too large and hid the image in the tin by covering up too much of the front. Finally, my creaky old brain thought of using 1/2 of a Word Window Punch (SU). It was perfect! The numbers come from PTI's Ambassador Monogram Alphabet.

I tied a bunch of tiny bows using 3/8" polka dot organdy and 3/8" satin edge organdy in the three colors to match the project. I tied a piece of silver cord around the center knot, tying just once, then threaded the tag onto the cord and tied twice more, in a granny knot.

I wrote an activity on each of the inserts for the tins. I plan to put these in the tin, then the candies. When we open a tin, we'll eat the candy and do the activity sometime that day. Some activities are simple, some more complex, some are service, some are just fun. Here's my list (in no particular order...actually, in the order they occurred to me):

Bake cookies
Christmas tree hunt
Decorate Christmas tree
Take family photo
Put up Christmas lights
Take cookies to firemen
Decorate the house
Sing 12 Days of Christmas
Start playing Christmas music (at my house, this has already begun, so I should have written "stop complaining about Mom playing Christmas music")
Make ornaments
Take cookies to neighbors
Do a secret service for someone
Decorate sugar cookies
Make a gingerbread house
Wrap family gifts
Mail Christmas cards
Buy gifts for charity
Write letters to Santa
Plan Christmas dinner
Make a Christmas craft
Read a Christmas story
Hang stockings
Sing carols
Read "The Night Before Christmas" (obviously on Christmas Eve)
Read Luke 2:1-14 (Christmas morning)

Another shot of the finished project.

Closeup of the rim. I thought the finished calendar was a bit plain, so I used nearly a whole jar of Aqua and Lavender buttons and hot glued them around the rim. It added a lot to the project and gave it some extra interest. It also burned the crud out of my fingertips!

Happy Stamping~~

Heidi

2009-10-23T09:51:00.000-07:00

A tag design I did for a customer who is a jewelry maker and wanting tags to tie to her creations with space inside to write information about the piece. Very simple design, computer generated business name, copper embossed moon (PTI Out on a Limb), then I dragged the edges in Versamark and embossed in copper for a rough look.

2009-10-21T16:22:00.000-07:00

This first card is for the Embellish Magazine color challenge and the Sweet & Sassy Stamps sketch challenge.

One of the requirements of the sketch challenge was to use something recycled. I used a 2 liter soda bottle to cut out the snowflakes with a Cuttlebug die. I was surprised because the piece of the bottle was really curling and driving me crazy until I ran it through the machine. Something about the cutting process made the snowflakes lie flat! I love my clear snowflakes, and I think I'm going to try even more shapes cut from soda bottles. I think green bottles would also be a fabulous choice!

The colors were to be PTI's Raspberry Fizz, light pink, and a dark grey, plus you had to use bling! I added rhinestones to the snow lady's buttons and hat, plus the centers of the snowflakes.

I cut out a mask of the snowman and sponged in the sky using Bashful Blue ink. Afterwards, I added Fun Flock to the ground using a Quickie Glue Pen. I stamped snowflakes on the Basic Gray layer with Whisper White craft ink and then sponged the edges to soften it.

Paper: Raspberry Fizz and White (PTI), Basic Gray (SU)
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, Whisper White Craft, Versamark
Stamps: Made of Snow (PTI), Winter Wonder (Verve)
Accessories: Soda Bottle, Cuttlebug and Cuttlebug Dies, Hot Pink Kaiser Rhinestones, Copic Markers, Black Detail EP

I combined the color challenge with the technique challenge this week on Split Coast Stampers. The piercing comes from an Angel's Landing digital template. It's so great, you just print them over and over on copy paper or cardstock to use again and again. I only reprint a new one if the old one gets wrinkled or ink-stained. I stitched around the border of the large artichoke layer and on the back edge of the smaller artichoke layer. The edges of the main image panel are distressed and nearly everything is sponged!

Paper: Very Vanilla, Bravo Burgundy, Apricot Appeal, Designer Prints Pack
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, Bravo Burgundy
Stamps: Penny Black, Winter Wonder (Verve)
Accessories: Digi Template (Angel's Landing), Copic Markers, Kaiser Rhinestones and Pearls

Versamark Resist and Using Fabric on Cards

2009-10-20T17:35:00.000-07:00

This card uses the Versamark Resist technique. To make the main image panel, I stamped acorns (Abundant Blessings by Verve) onto glossy cardstock using Versamark and let dry. Then I sponged More Mustard, Dusty Durango, and Bravo Burgundy ink over the acorns. The Versamark will resist the other colors of ink and remain white on the multicolored background. I also used this technique on the snowflake card below.

The layout for this card comes from Verve Visual's October release sketch challenge VSOCT09B. The colors in the card got inspiration from The Cat's Pajamas Tuesday Challenge.

Paper: Basic Grey Indian Summer ($5.50), Pumpkin Pie, Bravo Burgundy, Glossy White
Ink: Versamark, Chocolate Chip
Stamps: Abundant Blessings (Verve)
Accessories: 7/8" Satin Ribbon in Burgundy ($.35/yd)

Another Versamark resist card.

Paper: Designer Prints Pack (SU), Night of Navy, Whisper White, Glossy White
Ink: Versamark, Bashful Blue, Night of Navy,
Stamps: Verve Winter Wonder & Snow Wonderful
Accessories: 7/8" satin in navy ($.35/yd), 3/8" striped organdy in light blue ($.11/yd), Kaiser Rhinestones in dark blue and silver

I just found Mercy's blog today. I decided to participate in her sketch challenge. The main burgundy panel is stamped with the Aida Cloth background, then I cut a hole in it with a scalloped rectangle die. The printed background is actually fabric that I stitched onto the backside. The center poinsettia is popped up and all 3 flowers have gold glitter in the centers. The stamps are from Poinsettia Christmas by Verve.

2009-10-20T00:10:00.000-07:00

I made this card to meet the requirements of two challenges today: Verve's Monday Mojo Sketch Challenge and the Creative Clear Stamps Elegance Challenge (Using only black, white, gray, and/or silver, with absolutely no other color).

The white background (Pretty Petals from SU) is stamped in Versamark and embossed using black embossing powder. The silver background and main image (Abundant Blessings by Verve) are also stamped in Versamark and embossed with black EP. The sentiment (Black Tie Birdies by Verve) is stamped with Versamark and embossed with silver detail powder. The rhinestones (black and silver) and black satin edge organdy with silver stripe are from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts.

2009-10-19T21:02:00.000-07:00

OK, this has to be one of my favorite cards ever! I was so crazy about the way it turned out, and I can't think of one single thing I would change about it. This kitty is one of my most beloved stamps, she's just sassy and cute, just purrfect!

I stamped the Geometric background stamp on a piece of Wintergreen (SU) DP in black ink. The "MEOWY" letters are from Retro Alphabet (SU); the "Christmas" is part of a sentiment from Wishes Awash (SU). The snowflakes stamped on the red background are from Snow Wonderful (Verve), the hat is from Holiday Sampler (SU), and the kitty, of course is from Cool Cat (SU). The kitty has Dazzling Diamond glitter on her collar and the white part of her hat.

People ask me all the time about my bows. This bow, which looks so "perfect" is actually a trick bow! I ran a piece of ribbon across the green panel and adhered to the backside, leaving just a touch of slack. I tied a piece of red burlap string around the straight piece of ribbon and snipped the ends super close to the knot. Then I tied the bow and stuck it on with a glue dot! It's so much easier to do it this way, and it looks like it was tied around the panel, plus it takes less ribbon!

A Few More Ornament Samples

2009-10-18T11:28:00.000-07:00

This one has embossed silver around the edges of the tag, navy organdy ribbon, and a layered snowflake with bling on the ornament front.

This one uses burgundy satin ribbon, and a snowflake with bling in the middle of it. The edges of the white tag are dragged in burgundy craft ink and embossed with iridescent ice EP.

This one has embossed "snow" around the edges of the tag, light blue satin ribbon, and a snowflake with bling on the ornament front.

This one uses our fabulous Puff Dotty Ribbon and has holly with rhinestone berries on the front of the ornament.

Ornament Tutorial

2009-10-17T19:57:00.000-07:00

I had an idea for an ornament a few years ago and made a bunch of them for my siblings using clear glass balls. This time around I'm using glass topped tins. They idea is this: A snowman kit, everything you need to build a snowman, snow, a scarf, arms, nose, buttons, eyes, mouth, and hat. The tag says "Snowman Kit Some Assembly Required". I love fun and clever ornaments and I was rather proud to think of one on my own!

Here is one that is finished. The bow is made from a fabulous ribbon we carry in our store. It's called "Puff Dotty" ribbon. We have both satin and grosgrain in 5 colors. There are puffed up dots of different sizes all along the length and width of the ribbon. It's an incredible ribbon and it's impossible to resist touching it when you see it!

OK, now for the tutorial: Step 1, gather the ingredients. I used 3" clear top tins.

For the "snow" inside the ornament, I like using these iridescent sprinkles. Last time I checked they were available from JoAnn. They're also really cheap, which is a plus. When I made the glass ball ornaments, I used snow that looked more like real snow. Over the years, the other kind of snow has made the inside of the balls a bit cloudy, which the iridescent snow does not seem to do.
Now, decide what you want your snowman parts to look like. This time around, I opted for stamped scarves. Last time, I used thin strips of plaid fabric, and even frayed the ends to make it look like a real scarf. The hats, noses, and arms are all from a Cuttlebug snowman die, "Snow Fun". To make the hat band, I cut a super thin (probably 1/16") strip of cardstock with a pair of scissors and glued it to the hat using a Quickie Glue Pen. The "mouths, eyes, and buttons" are just black beads. Last time I made noses from Fimo clay and baked them. This time....#1: no Fimo, #2: no desire to go get some, nor to make noses when I can just die cut them.

Next, cut a circle to fit inside the tin and adhere it to the bottom of the tin. I used the closest Nestabilities size that would fit in the tin. It doesn't matter if there is space around the edge because it will be covered by the rim of the top of the tin anyway. I would not suggest using a tin smaller than 2" because it will be too cramped inside and you will not have enough room to shake around the snowman pieces and snow.

Next, add your snowman pieces and snow. I suggest pouring a pile of snow into the tin, then put the lid on and see how it looks. You don't want too much, nor too little snow. I have found that about 1/2 full when tipped up on it's side is just about right. It's hard to gauge when the tin is laying flat.

Next, close the tin and cut a piece of patterned paper 3/4" wide and 9 1/2" long. I used Basic Grey's Eskimo Kisses paper here. It is only 6" long, so I had to cut two pieces. Put adhesive all over the back of the paper strip(s), and I do mean all over. You want a strong adhesive such as ATG or red line tape. You will be sorry if you try to use Mono adhesive. Cut a piece of sheer ribbon long enough to go around the tin with about 3 inches to spare. Determine which side of your ornament is the top. Some patterned papers don't have an "up" side, but if you scroll down to the last photo, you will see that I forgot to check this when making my first sample ornament. My patterned paper lies sideways! Ugh!! Now, put a glue dot at the top of the ornament, where the knot from the sheer ribbon will lie. I used 5/8" white organdy with a silver edge from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts. Tie the sheer ribbon around the the ornament tightly, making sure to tug the knot until it is nice and tight. Snip the ends very close to the knot. Cut a piece of cord about 6"-8" in length, place both cut ends together, and tie in a knot. Slip the knot under the sheer ribbon knot as shown in the photo. Note that the knotted end is toward the front of the ornament.

Now, pull up the knotted end and slip the looped end through the opposite loop. Look carefully, you can see the detail. Trust me, this will make the knots all end up in the right place. I played around with it to find the right direction.

Tug gently on the loop end until the knot tightens around the sheer ribbon knot.

Tie a bow with any ribbon you desire. 7/8" or larger works best, but you can really use anything. For this ornament, I also used white sheer with a silver edge.

Next, add your finishing touches as desired. The "instructions" are computer generated, then punched out using an SU tag punch, the mat is the larger SU tag punch. Sometimes I use a Versamarker and emboss "snow" around the edges of the tag using Iridescent Ice embossing powder. I added a snowflake cut using my Cuttlebug (rhinestone in the center). I also stamped snowflakes on the white part of the tag. (Darn sideways ornaments, this is why you need to pay attention to which way is up when you start tying ribbons! LOL

Enjoy, and please share your versions of my project. I'd love to see your take on it!

2009-10-17T17:27:00.000-07:00

There was a fun sketch challenge on Paper Craft Planet today. It was designed to show off the background, but this idea came into my head, so I ran with it. I love it when a card designs itself in my head and turns out like I thought it would. Sometimes it designs itself right into a disaster and makes me wish I'd never started!

The birds are paper pieced, rather tedious, but worth the work. The scalloped circle at the top of the card is there to cover a slightly crooked sentiment that I stamped directly on the card. It was a happy mistake because I like the scallop there!

Paper: PTI White, SU Pretty in Pink cardstock, SU Designer Prints Pack
Ink: Adirondack Pitch Black
Stamps: A Little Birdie Told Me and Smarty Pants (both SU)
Accessories: 1/4" grosgrain in Cantaloupe, Strawberry Oregon Raindrops ($1/jar)

Taylored Expressions Sketch 10/16

2009-10-16T22:30:00.000-07:00

I just can't seem to stop reaching for my Riley stamps. Maybe it's because they're just too darn adorable!

I made this card for the Taylored Expressions challenge today. This is a very straightforward, clean and simple card. The Riley is colored with Prismacolor Pencils and Gamsol. The buttons, brads, and burlap string are from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts. The sentiment is from Birthday Surprise (Verve Stamps). I totally stole the idea for the sentiment tag from my friend Michelle Woerner. I was at her house yesterday and she was finishing up one of the cards for the Unity challenge. I kept throwing out suggestions and she kept trying her own ideas and nothing was working right. She finally came up with a tag similar to the one I used on my card. The only difference is that my tag has asymmetrical tails. This was actually by accident, but then I liked it so I left it! I just love happy accidents!!

Snow Wonderful Riley!

2009-10-16T13:49:00.000-07:00

I can't help but smile when I see Riley on a card! He just makes life seem better, what a clever moose!

I made this card for two different challenges: First: Embellish Magazine (round cards), Second: Creative Clear Stamps (using scallops).

To make this card, I used my Cricut with the Tags, Bags, Boxes & More cartridge and using the blue polka-dot paper (PTI), I cut out a 5 1/4" flower. Then I cut out a shadow of the flower in the same size using a random piece of cardstock from my stash. I cut a piece of Cocoa cardstock 5 1/2" x 11", folded it in 1/2, then traced the "shadow" onto the folded cardstock putting the top two petals slightly over the edge of the fold. This allows for a flower shaped card to still have a hinge. I adhered the blue paper to the cocoa card base.

Then, I stamped Riley onto a piece of white cardstock and cut him out with a Nestie circle. I also cut out a scalloped circle using Certainly Celery cardstock. The Riley is colored using Prismacolor Pencils and Gamsol. The Riley circle is masked with the Nestie and sponged using Cocoa ink, then, I removed the Nestie and sponged the whole edge with Bashful Blue ink. I adhered the Riley to the Celery circle and popped them both up on foam tape on the card base.

The sentiment is stamped in Versamark and embossed with Iridescent Ice embossing powder. I alternated Split Pea and Ice Blue rhinestones on the individual scallops.

Paper: PTI Bitty Dot Basics & White; SU Close to Cocoa & Certainly Celery
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black; SU Close to Cocoa, Bashful Blue
Stamps: Riley (Hannah Stamps), Snow Wonderful (Verve Stamps)
Accessories: 3/8" Striped Organdy in white/silver ($.10/yd), silver cord ($.17/yd), Kaiser Rhinestones in Ice Blue and Split Pea ($1.75), Iridescent Ice EP, Prismacolor Pencils & Gamsol

Three Fall Leaves Cards

2009-10-16T11:52:00.000-07:00

I made three cards last night for Splitcoast's Ways to Use it Challenge. The challenge was to make use of fall leaves. I can't believe how different all 3 cards turned out, especially because all 3 use Basic Grey's Indian Summer paper. I can't decide which is my favorite. My hubby likes the first one the best.

This card is a tri-fold faux envelope card. The finished card measures 4.5" x 4.5". The sentiment is stamped with Versamark and embossed with Black Detail powder.

Paper: Basic Grey Indian Summer, PTI Black
Ink: Versamark, Really Rust, Ruby Red, More Mustard
Stamps: Psalm 37:4 and Abundant Blessings (Verve Stamps)
Accessories: Black Detail Embossing Powder, 3/8" Black Grosgrain ($.18/yd)

What a fun card this was to make! It was thrilling to see the color of the background paper emerge through the stamped leaves as I heated the embossing powder. It was almost better than chocolate.....almost! The background leaves are stamped with Versamark and embossed with Black Detail Powder. The sentiment and gold leaf are also stamped in Versamark and embossed using Gold Glory embossing powder.

Paper: Basic Grey Indian Summer, PTI Black, SU Purely Pomegranate
Ink: Versamark
Stamps: Autumn, Friend to Friend (SU)
Accessories: Striped Organdy ($.11/yd), Burlap String ($.10/yd)

I just love perky organdy bows, they make me so happy, almost giddy and I can't help but smile! This card just gives me a happy feeling, and not least because it was very simple to make. Just layers of cardstock and a little Versamark, clear embossing powder, and a shot from a heat gun. then the fun bow!

Paper: Basic Grey Indian Summer, SU Chocolate Chip, Dusty Durango, and More Mustard
Ink: Versamark
Stamps: Fall Leaves (CTMH), Out on a Limb & Out on a Limb Additions (PTI)
Accessories: 7/8" Organdy in Chocolate

Pastel Swirly Sparkly Christmas!!

2009-10-14T20:48:00.001-07:00

I designed this the request of a customer. She wanted circles, pastels, pink, swirls, glitter, shimmer, and bling! This card has it all!!

I cut the circles using my Cuttlebug and Nestabilities. The green circle is embossed using the Cuttlebug Snowflakes folder and then painted with Angel Wings Shimmerz. The pink circle is stamped with Versamark and embossed using Iridescent Ice embossing powder. The main panel is stamped with snowflakes in Pale Plum ink, the sentiment stamped in Perfect Plum Craft Ink and also embossed with Iridescent Ice EP.

I punched the bottom of the plum panel with SU!'s Scallop Border Punch and rounded the corners with their larger corner rounder.

Paper: PTI with the exception of Basic Grey Sugared
Stamps: PTI Snowflake Serenade, Take a Bough
Ink: Pale Plum Classic, Versamark, Perfect Plum Craft
Accessories: Antique Pink Kaiser Rhinestones, Striped Organdy Ribbon, Nesties, Word Window Punch, Lg. Corner Rounder, Scallop Border Punch, Angel Wings Shimmerz, Embossing Gun, Iridescent Ice EP

2009-10-14T17:00:00.000-07:00

One more for the Sketch Challenge today. This one just popped in my head and begged me to make it. I sort of CASE'd myself because I made a card somewhat like this a few years ago: My Other Card, which I suppose is what gave me the idea to make this sketch using tags.

This was a bit of work to make with all of the details. I could not find a single holly stamp in my entire collection (which is huge) that was the right size and feel for this alphabet, so I drew my own. I am not an artist, but these images are very simple. I drew them in pencil first because I was fairly positive that I would mess up....and I was right. I colored the holly using Copic Markers. Then I put glue on the berries using a Quickie Glue Pen and added glitter. To make the tags edges in gold, I drew along the edges, one side at a time with a Versamarker and embossed with Gold Glimmer EP, which has gold glitter mixed in. I love, love, love the way this turned out! I added Olive Buttons laced with gold cord and natural burlap string. I left all of the layers plain with straight corners to allow the tags to be the focal point of the card.

Buttons, burlap string, Basic Grey Wassail Paper, Copics, and gold cord are from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts.

2009-10-14T12:18:00.000-07:00

This card is for the Taylored Expressions sketch. The bird is stamped in Versamark, embossed with clear detail powder, cut out and popped up on foam tape.

Paper: PTI
Ink: Perfect Plum, Versamark
Stamps: Inkadinkado, Filigree Fantasy (Verve)
Accessories: 1/8" Organdy in Eggplant and Azalea ($.10/yd.), Kaiser Rhinestones ($1.75) in Split Pea, Clear Detail Embossing Powder, SU Scallop Border Punch

I did a couple versions of the sketch challenge today.

The whole background of this card is stamped with Versamark and embossed with Iridescent Ice embossing powder; it is so sparkly. The three filigrees are also embossed with clear detail powder. Each button is threaded with iridescent cord and either tied in a knot or a bow.

Paper: Rose Red, Bermuda Bay, Regal Rose, Basic Grey Lemonade
Stamps: CHF Background, Filigree Fantasy (Verve)
Ink: Versamark, Basic Black, Regal Rose, Rose Red
Accessories: Burlap String in Rose ($.10/yd), Iridescent Cord ($.17/yd), Coral Rose Buttons ($1.50/jar), Lippy Red Kaiser Rhinestones ($1.75)

My second version of the sketch challenge.

Paper: Basic Grey Lemonade
Stamps: PTI Free Anniversary set this year
Ink: Regal Rose, Taken with Teal
Accessories: Kaiser Rhinestones in Lippy Red and Island Lagoon, 1/8" Organdy in Teal, Iridescent Cord ($.17/yd), Oregon Raindrops in Sea Blue ($1.00/jar, just like dewdrops just way cheaper!), .05 black pen, Glitter pen

Color Challenge & Cat's Pajamas TCP Tuesday Challenge

2009-10-13T12:42:00.000-07:00

Today's challenges are SCS's Color Challenge, (Bermuda Bay, Apricot Appeal, and Chocolate Chip) and The Cat's Pajamas challenge to use buttons. I haven't run across a pocket card in a while, so I thought I'd make one for this challenge.

All in all a pretty simple card, though I messed around with it for a couple of hours and had a couple of false starts. The butterfly is embossed with Chocolate embossing powder and the interior stippled with Groovy Guava Ink.

Paper: Whisper White, Bermuda Bay, Apricot Appeal, Chocolate Chip
Ink: Versamark, Taken with Teal, Apricot Appeal, Groovy Guava, Chocolate Chip
Stamps: Butterfly Wings (CTMH), Warmest Regards (SU)
Accessories: 1/8" Organdy ($.10/yd.), Orange Juice Buttons ($1.50/jar), Chocolate EP

Technique Challenge

2009-10-12T17:52:00.000-07:00

I was not going to participate in this challenge. It just did not inspire me this morning. As the day wore on, I kept running the challenge over and over in my mind. While cleaning my stamping desk I came across the two pieces of striped DP from the Basic Grey Wassail pad which I had cut in error last week. They gave me a spark of inspiration and this was the result.

This hedgehog stamp always makes me happy when I see it. I usually end up coloring it in a very different color palette than this. I was glad to have the inspiration from the paper.

Paper: Basic Grey Wassail, SU So Saffron, Bravo Burgundy, Whisper White, and Always Artichoke
Ink: Bravo Burgundy, Adirondack Pitch Black
Stamps: Penny Black, Warmest Wishes (SU)
Accessories: Nestabilities, Vintage Christmas Buttons (Only $1.50/jar), Kaiser Pearls, Satin Ribbon ($.25/yd), Burlap String ($.10/yd), SU Scallop Border Punch, Copic Markers

CCEE's Shape Up & Stand Tall Challenge

2009-10-12T14:26:00.000-07:00

My friend Dawn is going to be the death of me. I thought I was done with challenges for the day until I saw her card on her blog. Great, another challenge!!

My 16-year-old son Stephen had a hand in making this card. He saw me heading for my stamping table and asked what paper I was going to use. I was surprised he cared! LOL He reached for my Basic Grey Archaic pad and told me to use that one because it is "cool".

Awesome, now I'm cool, I guess!! That is until I show up at his school wearing curlers the next time I get a call from the Principal.

But, I digress....onto the card: I used Copics to color the cat. Antique Brass brads and Burlap String are from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts. I was too lazy to change the thread in my sewing machine, so I just did faux stitching instead.

Other papers used are Ruby Red, Very Vanilla, and Garden Green. Stamps are Elzybells and SU Sincere Salutations.

Four Challenge Cards for today!

2009-10-12T10:54:00.000-07:00

This card photographed with a very orange tone, but in real life it is a vibrant red. I made this card for the Vive la Verve October week 2 challenge. The challenge was to use this sketch and to NOT use orange or brown. This card has a little bling! I stamped the poinsettia in Real Red Craft Ink and embossed with Iridescent Ice embossing powder. I added Aqua glue to the center of the poinsettia and adhered yellow microbeads over the stamped image.

Stamps: Poinsettia Christmas (Verve), Mixed Messages (PTI)
Paper: Dasher, Old Olive DP, Real Red, Very Vanilla (SU)
Ink: Real Red Craft, Old Olive Classic
Accessories: Gold Striped Organdy, Fire Engine and Gentle Times Buttons, Kaiser Pearls in Red, Yellow Microbeads, Iridescent Ice Embossing Powder

This card is so sparkly and shimmery in real life. Nearly every panel has bling of some kind on it! I stamped the background stamp (CHF) in Brilliant Blue Craft Ink and embossed using Iridescent Ice embossing powder. The whole background is alive with sparkles! The sentiment is also stamped in Brilliant Blue Craft Ink and embossed with the Iridescent Ice embossing powder.

Stamps: Winter Wonder (Verve), Snowflake Serenade (PTI), Pretty Pattern Backgrounder (CHF)
Paper: Bashful Blue DP, Brilliant Blue, Whisper White
Ink: Brilliant Blue Craft, Bashful Blue Classic
Accessories: Kaiser Rhinestones in Dark Blue, Iridescent Ice embossing powder, 7/8" Royal Blue organdy

Another Cute & Simple card this Monday. This card and the next use the "thumping" technique. Basically, you ink up your stamp and "thump" your marker on the inked stamp in a darker or contrasting color. I used Old Olive on the image and thumped it with Garden Green. The card is scored 1/2" in from the edges all the way around the card. Stamps are Baroque Motifs (SU) and Winter Wonder (Verve). Kaiser Rhinestones are from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts.

This card is also "thumped"; the image is inked in Ballet Blue and thumped with Brilliant Blue. Stamps are Snow Swirled (SU) and Winter Wonder (Verve). Kaiser Rhinestones, Star Rhinestones, Striped Organdy, and Silver Cord are all PHPC.

A Cupcake Challenge for Hope Stamps Eternal

2009-10-11T19:52:00.000-07:00

I stamped this card today for Hope Stamps Eternal's cupcake challenge. I took my inspiration from the colors on the cupcake. I've been looking for a chance to use this angel stamp from Inkadinkado. It's a large stamp, so the finished card actually measures 5" x 7". The technique used on this card is called Embossed Resist. I stamped the angel in Versamark ink on Whisper White cardstock and embossed using clear detail embossing powder. I first sponged So Saffron ink on and around the angel. Then I sponged Pretty in Pink around the Saffron. The pink turned out too bright for the patterned paper (Basic Grey Sugared), so I sponged Creamy Caramel over the pink ink, then sponged the edges in Chocolate Chip. I layered the main image panel in So Saffron and then Always Artichoke cardstock. I hand cut the top edge including the circle. The original circle, I traced with a Nestie and then cut it out. I added Antique Pink Rhinestones around the image. Sentiment is from Papertrey's Take a Bough set. For a finishing touch, I added Pale Pink 7/8" Satin Ribbon from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts.

No Embellishments!! No Kidding!!!

2009-10-11T10:53:00.000-07:00

The limited supply challenge on SCS this past Friday was to make a card with no embellishments. Seriously none!! No glitter, no ribbon, no brads, no cute little anything, nada, nothing, diddly! Dang!!!

This is the first one I came up with. I stamped the "ribbon" using CTMH's Ritzy Ribbon stamp set. I cut out the ribbon and stamped the backside as well so the white cardstock wouldn't show when I "tied" the "bow". I cut the strip of cardstock into pieces and looped, notched, or rolled it as needed and stuck the whole thing together using glue dots. At first glance, people thought I cheated on the challenge, but there is nothing on this card other than paper and ink! Really!!

The leaves were colored using the Rock & Roll technique. Very simply explained, you ink up your stamp using a light color and then "Rock & Roll" the edges of the inked stamp in a darker color, then stamp. It makes the leaves look very realistic, especially using fall colors. I love this technique for all kinds of images, but to me it just looks fabulous with flowers and leaves!

Stamps: Ritzy Ribbon & Fall Leaves (CTMH), Friend to Friend (SU)
Ink: Basic Black, More Mustard, Pumpkin Pie, Tangerine Tango, Purely Pomegranate, Rich Razzleberry
Paper: Tangerine Tango, Whisper White, Rich Razzleberry, Basic Grey Indian Summer

This is basically a one layer card. The technique is known as a "Zindorf sky", created by Michele Zindorf. This type of card always turns out as an eye-popping work of art. They are really not too difficult to create either!

I used 4 different colors of ink to create the moon and sky. I sponged a large area of Almost Amethyst to create the moon. Next, I used scratch paper to cut out a circle the size I wanted the moon to end up. I drew on one side with a Quickie Glue Pen and let the glue dry; this made the circle function as a post-it note and stay in place while I sponged over it. I sponged in a perimeter around the moon using Lavender Lace, then moved out a layer and used Lovely Lilac, then finally Elegant Eggplant. Lastly, I sponged the entire edge of the image panel using Eggplant. I stamped the witch, tree branches, and spider using Palette Ink in Noir. I think Palette is the best ink to use with Inkadinkado stamps because they are difficult images to stamp and don't like to hold ink very well. Palette is a nice, hybrid ink and a bit thicker than regular ink. I used a Creative Memories black journaling pens to draw in the spider's thread.

Paper: Whisper White, Elegant Eggplant
Ink: Almost Amethyst, Lavender Lace, Lovely Lilac, Elegant Eggplant, Palette Noir
Stamps: Inkadinkado, Take a Bough (PTI)

A Frosty Winter Card & An Elegant Wedding Card

2009-10-08T14:13:00.000-07:00

Two cards were on my plate today. I wanted to make one for Taylored Expressions sketch challenge this week. I also had one to make that could serve a dual purpose. We have a wedding reception tomorrow night, and I needed to make a card for the WT challenge at SCS. The WT challenge was to be inspired by things from around the world. My card (2nd below) was inspired at first by India, and the art and colors there. In the end, it reminds me more of an Italian bistro! Either way, it's a lovely, simple card. I didn't want too many details to clutter it up.

This card is a variation on the Brayered Sky technique. You can find directions here for the Brayered Sky, which is basically the same thing except that I used stippling brushes instead of a brayer and sponges to add the colors to the sky. My sky colors are (starting with the lightest): Soft Sky, Baja Breeze, Blue Bayou, Rich Razzleberry, and Elegant Eggplant. The Silver Cord and Kaiser Rhinestones are from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts. Stamps are all by Stampin' Up!, Lovely as a Tree and Warmest Regards. The charm is from the line Elements of Charm by Paper Parachute.

This is an extremely simple card, the Polished Stone Background being the exception. I made this piece of polished stone last year and used the other 1/2 to make a wedding card for my brother and his wife. All I did today was to cut the corners with a corner punch, stamp the swirls (Baroque Motifs by Stampin' Up!) on using Staz-On ink, cut out the ovals with my Nesties, and stamp the sentiment (Warmest Regards by SU), and put it all together. Papers used are glossy white, Basic Black, and copper. 3/8" satin ribbon is from PHPC as well.

2009-10-07T22:01:00.000-07:00

I saw great card posted today by Julee Tilman for The Cat's Pajamas weekly challenge, so I decided to head over to The Cat's Pajamas and check it out. What a great sketch, and how much fun was this card to make?? Way fun!! I really like the stamp designs at Cat's Pajamas, but don't own any of them yet....hmmm....might have to change that!

Card Deets:

Paper: Basic Grey Eerie, SU Only Orange, Lovely Lilac, Green Galore, PTI White
Ink: Adirondack Pitch Black
Stamps: Riley (Hannah Stamps), Ahoy Matey (SU)
Accessories: 5/8" striped organdy in black, 3/8" polka dot organdy in purple and lime, 3/8" organdy in orange, Kaiser Rhinestones in Deep Purple, Copic Markers, Cuttlebug Swiss Dots folder

Sketch Challenge #249

2009-10-07T14:34:00.000-07:00

I really liked the sketch challenge for today at SCS. My two cards are completely different from each other, and one of them is even flipped on it's side. What fun this sketch was!

I have loved this saying ever since I first saw it on Elzybell's website. It still makes me giggle whenever I read it.

To make the sentiment panel, I cut a piece of white cardstock and stamped the saying. I then stamped teeny snowflakes (Verve Winter Wonder) in Baja Breeze and lightly sponged the edges with the same color of ink. There is stitching all the way around the largest layer of DP.

Card Deets:

Paper: SU Not Quite Navy, Baja Breeze, Whisper White, and Bayou Blue DP
Stamps: Elzybells sentiment, Verve Winter Wonder
Ink: Not Quite Navy, Baja Breeze
Accessories: CM corner punch, Kaiser Pearls, 5/8" Striped Organdy White/Silver, Sponge

Another card for this week's sketch challenge! I had lots of fun making this card.

I stamped the main image using Adirondack Pitch Black ink. Starting from the flower out, I used So Saffron, Tangerine Tango, and Ruby Red inks, stippling from lightest to darkest.

The sentiment says "Love is Spoken Here."

Card Deets:

Paper: Stampin' Up! Basic Black, Whisper White, So Saffron, Tangerine Tango, Tangerine Tango DP
Ink: Adirondack Pitch Black
Stamps: CTMH Treasure Life
Accessories: SU Border Punch, Kaiser Pearls, 7/8" Satin Ribbon

Color Challenge, Limited Supply Challenge, and a Verve Challenge!

2009-10-06T18:21:00.000-07:00

Stamping again today! There's something so restful and soothing about laying stamps into ink and then onto paper and getting a pleasing result. I love doing challenges because it makes me think outside the box and get more creative than I might if left to my own devices.

This card is for the Verve October challenge. It was a sketch challenge with the added twist of making the card a bit shabby. I distressed the top two circles of cardstock, plus the edges of the circle of designer paper. I used Basic Grey's Bittersweet paper, Stampin' Up! Chocolate Chip, and Papertrey white cardstock. The stamps are all from Verve's Snow Wonderful set. I made the background paper myself using a stamp from that set, stamped in Chocolate Chip ink and then sponging on Regal Rose, Rose Red, and Creamy Caramel. The snowlady is stamped on white and colored with Copic Markers. I painted the brim and pom pom of her hat with white craft ink and then using Heat N' Stick powder added Fun Flock as well. The sentiment is embossed in white and the only embellishments are the satin ribbons in Pale Pink and Chocolate.

This card is for last week's Limited Supply Challenge. The only requirement was to use a tree image, which I did. Yay for me! The designer paper is Basic Grey Wassail with Bravo Burgundy matting. The ribbon tag is a Cuttlebug Die and the sentiment (PTI Take a Bough) is embossed in white. I used Copics to color the image and finished off the card with a 7/8" organdy bow in hunter. I added one last touch on the string of lights. I used a Sakura Quickie Glue Pen on each little light then sprinkled on red glitter. It's so sparkly in real life, and the lights look like they are actually twinkling! Bling is a good thing!!

This card is for today's color challenge on SCS. It actually looks more simple than it is. I stamped the entire background using PTI's Guidelines stamp set. I used Creamy Caramel for the lines, Mellow Moss and White Craft for the medallions. I then heat-set the white ink because I am not patient enough to wait for it to dry! I used Nestabilities Labels 2 dies for the main image panel. I embossed the edges of both layers and then sponged the bottom layer with Mellow Moss ink. The main image is from PTI's Spiral Bouquet and embossed in white. The 7/8" satin ribbon is in the color Ivy, which goes well with Mellow Moss even though it's a little darker. I stamped the sentiment (PTI Mixed Messages) onto a piece of white cardstock and punched it out with SU's Word Window Punch. I added Kaiser Rhinestones in Split Pea to the sentiment panel and 3 of the medallions on the bottom left.

One Last Challenge for Today

2009-10-05T17:22:00.000-07:00

One last card for today. This one is for the Verve Project Parade Challenge in October. To make the background, I took a piece of scrap cardstock and cut out leaves using Cuttlebug dies. I used the cardstock as a stencil and sponged/stippled to my heart's content using nearly every Earth Elements color in the orange/yellow/red family. After adding the leaves, I sponged in lightly all around them to cover the entire background. The images are from Papertrey's Spiral Bouquet set. It's a pretty simple card. I used a Creative Memories corner punch on the vellum layer. The black brads and 7/8" black satin ribbon are from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts.

It's a "Challenging" Day!!

2009-10-05T15:15:00.000-07:00

Today is a day of challenges! I have three challenge cards on my plate today. I can't decided which is my favorite, but one of them certainly makes me giggle!!

My sweet Mother-in-Law always sends my kids a nice birthday card and puts a contribution into their college fund. I spend a good amount of time making thank-you cards for her because I know she saves them and really appreciates my hard work. She is also a knitter, so this stamp is perfect for her! I have been eying this stamp for quite a while and finally broke down and bought it. I also loooove Riley stamps (of course this is Sophie, not Riley), but Riley could knit if he wanted to, couldn't he? I made this card for Verve's Mojo Monday sketch. Look closely at Sophie's chair, it is paper pieced using one of the Marrakech papers.

Card Deets:

Paper: Papertrey White, Basic Grey Marrakech, SU Not Quite Navy
Ink: Adirondack Pitch Black
Stamps: Riley (Hannah Stamps), PTI Mixed Messages
Accessories: Nestabilities Circles, Self-Adhesive Flowers, Oregon Raindrops in Melon and Crystal Clear, Prismacolor pencils & Gamsol

This design is for today's Clean & Simple (CAS) challenge. The challenge today was to be inspired by various photos of throw pillows from Cost Plus World Market. I was inspired by the Middle Eastern designs and rich earth tone colors. It was hard to stay "clean and simple" with this challenge, but I think I pulled it off. It's a very simple card to make and quick to mass reproduce.

Card Deets:

Paper: PTI White, SU More Mustard, Pumpkin Pie, Really Rust, and Ruby Red
Ink: SU Chocolate Chip, More Mustard, Pumpkin Pie, Really Rust, and Ruby Red
Stamps: Verve Birthday Surprise & Filigree Fantasy
Accessories: Kaiser Rhinestones, Satin Ribbon

One last card for the day. I have a couple of sisters with birthdays this month, so my previous card and this one are both birthday cards. Happy birthday to Mary (yesterday) and Ginger (end of the month)! The rust panel is for the Technique Lovers Faux Suede challenge today.

Card Deets:

Paper: PTI White, SU Chocolate Chip & Outlaw DP
Ink: Adirondack Espresso
Stamps: Verve Abundant Blessings, PTI Out on a Limb Sentiments
Accessories: 3/8" Grosgrain in Artichoke & Moss, Aged Copper Brads, Kaiser Rhinestone

WT238 Hedgie Snow!!

2009-10-01T11:20:00.000-07:00

Today's WT Challenge at SCS is to give your sentiments some jazz. I decided to make my sentiment the focus of the entire card. What a fun card to make!!

Card Deets:

Stamps: Tall Tales Alphabet, Hedgehog Happiness, both SU
Ink: Purely Pomegranate, Memento Tuxedo Black
Paper: SU Purely Pomegranate, Garden Green, PTI White, Basic Grey Eskimo Kisses
Accessories: Gold Cord, Satin Edge/Metallic Ribbon, Foam Tape, Nestabilities, Copic Markers

Fat Snowmen Last Longer!

2009-10-01T09:46:00.001-07:00

From the time I first saw this stamp used on a card by my friend Miss Minx, I have loved it. The saying still makes me giggle, especially when coupled by this insanely huge snowman. I can't help it, they just make me happy!! These colors come from the Color Challenge this week at SCS.

Card Deets:

Stamps: Morningstar Stamps
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, Versamark
Paper: SU DP, Pretty in Pink, Sage Shadow, Going Gray, PTI White
Accessories: Nestabilities Labels 2, Kaiser Pearls in Rose, 5/8" Gray Grosgrain, 3/8" Light Pink Satin, Copic Markers

Splitcoast Sketch Challenge 248

2009-10-01T00:06:00.001-07:00

This is my version of this week's sketch challenge on Splitcoaststampers.

Card Deets:

Paper: SU Only Orange, Lovely Lilac, Basic Black, Basic Grey Eerie
Stamps: Long retired booking stamps from SU, SU Cheesecloth background
Ink: Basic Black Craft, Versamark, Basic Black
Accessories: Striped Organdy, Gingham Ribbon, Orange Brads, .005 black pen, black detail embossing powder

How do I Organize my Copics?

2009-09-29T10:38:00.000-07:00

I have had quite a few people lately ask me how I organize my Copic Markers. I have a somewhat anemic collection, but I am prepared for future growth!!

I purchased these great boxes from a variety of stores. I first found them at a local Office Depot. I have since ordered them from Staples.com and OfficeMax.com. They are made by Eldon/Rubbermaid. There are several things I love about them: You can store tons of pens in a small space. The "X" keeps pens separated by colors or types, and the "X" is removable so you can use the boxes for another use in the future. I love having the pens right at my fingertips, but not having to take up my workspace with pen cases. These boxes measure about 6" square, so this whole setup is only 1 foot square! This is a much more efficient storage solution than the cases Copic sells. The only downside is that this is not really a portable solution. I have an empty Sketch case that I use when I want to travel with my pens.

This is a wider view showing my stamping desk. I had my sweet hubby install a shelf about 8 inches above my stamping desk. This really increases my available storage space. I can put small drawers and pens under the shelf and my ink pads, paper stacks, and Copics. I have floating glass shelves above all of this stuff to hold my paper flowers!!

Feeling Like Autumn

2009-09-28T16:14:00.000-07:00

My wonderful sister-in-law and her hubby always send the best gifts to my kids for their birthdays....the gift of reading, in the form of Barnes & Noble gift cards. My kids are always so excited to get them and can't wait to use them. My youngest son turned 9 a couple of weeks ago, so I needed to make a thank-you card and today is the day!

This card layout is from the SCS Sketch Challenge #247 last week. I used this layout for both of the cards I made today. I painted Angel Wings Shimmerz over the pumpkins after coloring them.

Card Deets:

Paper: SU! Tangerine Tango DP, SU! Chocolate Chip, Papertrey White
Stamps: CHF Background, Verve Visual Tall Oaks, Papertrey sentiment
Ink: Adirondack Espresso, SU! Chocolate Chip
Accessories: Satin Edge Organdy with Metallic Stripe, Angel Wings Shimmerz, Kaiser Chocolate Pearls, Copic Markers

I needed to make a sympathy card for some dear friends who lost their son last week. You never really know the right thing to say and do, but I want them to know we are thinking about them and praying for them.

Card Deets:

Paper: SU! Haiku, More Mustard, Chocolate Chip, Tangerine Tango
Stamps: SU! Brighter Days, Papertrey First Fruits
Ink: SU! Chocolate Chip, More Mustard, Tangerine Tango, Ruby Red, and Versamark
Accessories: 7/8" Chocolate Organdy, Chocolate Brads, Embossing Powder

Halloween and Christmas Unite!!

2009-09-27T19:05:00.000-07:00

I am in Halloween and Christmas mode this week. With the new paper lines from Basic Grey, the creative juices are flowing all over autumn, Christmas, and Halloween. I can't stop thinking about cards using these 3 paper lines...I'm even dreaming about cards!

This is a very simple card, quite a few layers, but still a fairly "clean and simple card". There are few embellishments, just the three pearls in the centers of the snowflakes. Making the triangles for the background is very easy. I just cut two squares the size I need for that layer of the card. Turning the squares diagonally on my paper cutter, I cut from corner to corner, then take each resulting triangle and cut it in 1/2 by lining the point up with the groove the blade slides in. Fiskars makes a great paper cutter to use for this, I end up with 8 triangles, enough paper for 2 cards.

Card deets:

Paper Papertrey white, Stampin' Up! Garden Green, Purely Pomegranate, Basic Grey Eskimo Kisses
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, Stampin Up! Garden Green
Stamps: Elzybells main image and sentiment, Stampin' Up! Snow Burst
Accessories: Kaiser Pearls in Bliss, Copic Markers

I just love Witchybella....just her name makes me giggle, especially when I'm in a bad mood and feeling a little Witchybella myself! LOL I cut the pieces to this card in error last year and they sat in my basket just waiting for Halloween to roll around again. Don't ask me why I couldn't just make it into a card and wait a year to share...guess the Halloween creativity was all used up last year.

Card deets:

Paper: Papertrey white, Stampin' Up! DP, Only Orange and Basic Black
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, Lovely Lilac
Stamps: Stampin' Up! Bitty Boos Too, Stampingbella Witchybella
Accessories: Kaiser Rhinestones in Orange, Nestabilities, Cuttlebug, Satin Ribbon in Orange and Royal Purple, 5/8" Grosgrain in Black, Stampin' Up! scallop border punch, Prismacolor Pencils, Gamsol

Happy Sunday, and enjoy!

Masculine Cards and Halloween

2009-09-23T07:40:00.000-07:00

I always have a hard time stamping masculine cards. I think it's the fact that I feel I cannot use ribbon, and most other embellishments just tend to "girl" up a card. I needed a couple of thank-you cards for our Cub Scouts to give to two men who helped us with achievements. One of them is a veteran and taught us to fold a flag, raise it up a flag pole, and gave us a history lesson. To top it off, his wife is a stamper extraordinaire!!

I was flipping through my Basic Grey June Bug 6x6 paper pad and saw some great patriotic paper and this card just grew from there. I used Stampin' Up!'s "The Free and the Brave" stamp set and only Aged Copper brads for embellishments. I guess the stars might also count as embellishments, but they are just stamped and cut out.

I've been in a Halloween slump. Basic Grey came out with this great Halloween paper pack called "Eerie". There are a bunch of fabulous papers inside, but nothing was speaking to me. Maybe I need more Halloween stamp sets....I don't know what it is. Anyway, I thought about Halloween cards in my head for a couple of days and finally this card sort of designed itself. I used Orange Juice, Leprechaun, and Summertime buttons and tied 1/8" Organdy through the holes. This ribbon is extremely inexpensive; you can purchase 1 yard each of 41 colors for only $5.30!!

Have a fabulous stamping day!

Eskimo Kisses

2009-09-22T11:48:00.000-07:00

I never can get enough of Riley stamps. I just ordered a few more last weekend! I usually purchase mine at Hannah Stamps, she has free shipping when you spend $35, which is only 5 wood mounted Riley stamps....can't wait for the mail lady to bring them to me!!

This card utilizes three different basic techniques that can make your papercrafting more interesting.

The first is Colorblocking: I love to use this technique when I want to put a number of different designer papers on the same project. I actually used 5 different papers from the Eskimo Kisses paper pack. See if you can spot all 5 of them. To do a colorblock, I usually start with my background paper (navy in this case) and measure out the size of my first piece. On this project, I cut the striped piece at the top and then worked my way around the card, measuring and cutting as I went. A good paper cutter is essential for this technique; be sure to use one with tiny increments. My favorite to use on my desktop is made by Fiskars and has a sliding orange blade. You can make your blocks as large or as small as you want. I opted for only 4 large blocks on this card.
The second technique is Paper Piecing: If you look closely at Riley's chair, you can see it is actually stamped on patterned paper. To paper piece a project, just stamp your image as you normally would on white or another neutral paper. Then, ink your stamp again and stamp onto a piece of patterned paper. Now, you will cut up the image you stamped on the patterned paper. I cut out the three different parts of the chair/ottoman. Make sure to use very good scissors with sharply pointed tips. After cutting out the chair and coloring the main image, I simply glued the chair pieces over the image stamped on white cardstock.
The third technique is Paper Piercing: Look closely at the corners of my main panel. I pierced the 4 corners of this panel. It is harder to see in the photo, but in person, it leaves a really nice touch.

Card Deets:

Paper: Stampin' Up! Night of Navy, Papertrey White, Basic Grey Eskimo Kisses 6x6 Pad
Stamps: Riley Moose, Stampin' Up! sentiment inside
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black
Accessories: Cuttlebug, Square Nestabilities, Navy Brads, Tiny red pearl on top of the cupcake, Navy Satin Ribbon, Prismacolor pencils and Gamsol

Friends to the End

2009-09-22T10:51:00.000-07:00

This is one of the cutest stamps! It's by Inky Antics and makes me warm and fuzzy and happy inside!!

This card also shows off the Indian Summer paper pack. I used gold Stickles on the scallops, gold brads, and gold cord. The coloring was simple, just 4 colors and I used my Prismacolor pencils and Gamsol.

Card Deets:

Paper: Basic Grey Indian Summer 6x6 pad, Papertrey white, Stampin' Up! Basic Black & Purely Pomegranate
Stamps: Inky Antics, Papertrey Ink "Mixed Messages" (sentiment)
Ink: Versamark, Palette Noir
Accessories: Gold Brads, Gold Cord, Gold Stickles, Black Pearls, Cuttlebug, Rectangle Nestabilities, SU oval punches, foam tape,

I Can't Wait for Fall!!

2009-09-21T23:09:00.000-07:00

I have always loved the fall. When I was a kid, my favorite parts of fall were getting new school clothes, eating peaches from our neighbor's orchard while waiting for the bus, stuffing more peaches into the pockets of my coat to eat later, jumping in piles of colored leaves, enjoying the crisp air on my cheeks in the morning, and heading to school with a brand-new box of crayons.

Fall makes me feel happy now because it's fun to send my kids back to school and have a quiet house for most of the day. I love when it starts raining again. We are blessed to live in a place where we can see the storms moving through the valley. We have an amazing view, no matter the weather. I enjoy getting back to a schedule after the lazy days of summer. I love watching the colors of the farms in the valley change with the season. The blueberry fields are my favorite....the leaves of the blueberry bushes turn bright red!

I have had this kitty stamp for a while and never yet laid ink to rubber....it's about time! The stamp is called Fall Fun Kitty by Whipper Snapper Designs. I love kitties and this stamp called to me the first time I saw it. The stamp reminds me of the best parts of fall, the joy of the season, and the fleeting vibrant colors. The kitty just makes me happy, and the leaves were so fun to color! I sponged the edges of the main panel using the cutting die as a mask. The one leaf at the very top is cut out and popped up on foam tape....actually, it's there to hide a smudge, but don't tell anyone....shhhhh....

Card Deets:

Stamps: Whipper Snapper Designs "Fall Fun Kitty", Papertrey Ink "First Fruits" (sentiment)
Paper: Papertrey Ink White, Stampin' Up! Basic Black, Basic Grey Indian Summer
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, Stampin' Up! Pumpkin Pie and Old Olive
Accessories: Cuttlebug, Labels One Dies, corner rounder, Kaiser Pearls in Black, 3/8" Organdy in Rust and Gold, Burlap String in Rust, Natural, and Black, Gold Cord, Prismacolor Pencils and Gamsol.....I really need to enhance my Copic collection!

Hope you enjoy!

~~Heidi~~

Feeling froggy today!!

2009-08-28T11:16:00.001-07:00

I was in the middle of working and decided to take a break and stamp a little something. I haven't stamped since our vacation and had no ink stains on my fingers. They were looking a little plain, so it was stamping or a manicure....I opted for stamping!

This is actually a very simple card. No ribbon, that's a shock! The frog and sentiment are stamped in SU's Garden Green Craft ink and embossed. Supplies used:

Paper: Papertrey white, Basic Grey Lime Rickey, SU Garden Green and Green Galore
SU Garden Green Craft ink
Clear detail embossing powder
Cuttlebug and Swiss Dots folder
SU corner punch
CTMH Stamps: Good Times
Kaiser Rhinestones in Split Pea
Oregon Raindrops in Kiwi

Loving Lemonade!!

2009-08-04T08:52:00.000-07:00

We just received our shipment of Basic Grey Lemonade 6x6 pads. I must say I am in love with the color palette and pattern they used in this pad. The soft shades of teal, rose, and lime are just so pleasing. It makes me want to sit on the beach with an ice cold glass of lemonade and a good book! The colors remind me of childhood, weathered wood, wicker deck furniture, sea grass, and the salty smell of wind off of the ocean.

For this card, I used my Copics to color the image (Stampin' Up!). All papers are from the Lemonade 6x6 pad with the exception of the small teal oval, which is Stampin' Up! Taken with Teal. Basic Grey 6x6 pads are coming soon to PHPC! Brads are Vintage Raspberry from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts. Buttons are also PHPC as is the burlap string and 5/8" Jade grosgrain ribbon.

Well, we're off to the beach this Friday for 10 days of relaxation and family time. We will be back on the 17th, recharged and ready to go!!

My Shoebox Swap Card

2009-07-31T22:51:00.000-07:00

I am attending a shoebox swap at my friend Diana's house tomorrow morning. I have been designing this card in my head all week but I just got around to making it today. I wanted to design something clever and different but also very simple to make. This is what I came up with:

To make this card, I used my Cricut to cut out the DP flower, then I cut out the same size flower using the "shadow" effect in order to mat my original flower. Then I took a 6" x 12" piece of cocoa cardstock, folded it in half, then traced the "shadow" flower onto the folded cardstock, leaving a bit of the template sticking out over the fold. This allows for a flower-shaped card that is hinged at the top. I love the way this turned out, very simple, very cute (if I do say so myself), and very eye-catching!

Supplies used:

DP-unknown
SU Close to Cocoa and whisper white cardstock
Markers for coloring the image before stamping
SU punches (circle and scalloped circle and triple flower)
Strawberry Oregon Raindrop from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts
Chocolate Satin Edge Organdy with Gold Stripe
Glue dots and foam tape

I can't wait for tomorrow morning. It's going to be a fabulous day!!

Product Spotlight: 1/8" Organdy Ribbon

2009-05-24T13:19:00.000-07:00

My friend Michelle is crazy about our 1/8" organdy ribbon. I saw it on a card on her blog the other day and it reminded me of how much I like this ribbon. It's so versatile, and so small that you can thread it through a button!

Monkeys always make me smile! I can stand for hours watching monkeys goofing off in the zoo. I found this stamp in the $1 bin at JoAnn's some time back. It's just been sitting on my desktop looking at me since. I recently purchased the new Basic Grey Lime Rickey paper and to me it just screams, "Use a monkey stamp with me!!"

Supplies used:

Basic Grey Lime Rickey 6x6 pack
Stampin' Up! Whisper White (sentiment and main image), Only Orange
Papertrey White (card base)
1/8" Organdy from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts ($5.30 for 41 yards)
Foam Tape
Nestabilities Labels One
Gamsol and Prismacolor pencils

When Raindrops Meet the Rainbow.....

2009-05-23T17:26:00.000-07:00

What happens when our Oregon Raindrops meet the rainbow? Colored raindrops of course!

Editing to add the link to the Raindrop Store as promised!

Shown here in Watermelon, Melon, Sunshine, Kiwi, Sea Blue, and Grape Jelly.....almost good enough to eat!

Watch here for the big announcement, we'll start with 16 colors (hopefully today sometime) and add many more colors over the next two weeks. Check back later today or tomorrow and we'll post a link to the new Rainbow Raindrops page.

My First Attempt at Copics

2009-05-23T14:43:00.000-07:00

This past week my friend Michlle (sf9erfan) and I attended a Copic certification class. She is an old hand at using Copic markers, but I am brand new to this medium. The ironic thing is that I sell Copic Markers in my store, but had not yet gotten any for my own use. I colored this image at the Copic class and I loved the way it turned out with perfectly blended colors and fabulous shades of purple. For the life of me, I cannot remember which colors of markers I used, but I sure wish I had written them down.

I wanted to make this card very simple so the main focus would be on the coloring and the girl in the water. I used very few embellishments and went with a monochromatic color scheme to keep things clean looking.

Here's the deets:

Materials used:

Basic Grey Wisteria 6x6 paper pack
Neenah Classic Crest Solar White (main image)
Stampin' Up! Elegant Eggplant CS
Papertrey White CS (card base)
Stamps: Seaside Sketches from Stampin' Up! and Out on Limb from Papertrey. I used the smaller version of the Out on a Limb sentiments that came with the original set.
Copic Markers, I think in the V and BV lines.
Eggplant and Iris Organdy from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts
Tucked in the bottom right corner, I also used some Oregon Raindrops in Amethyst, coming soon to Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts.....maybe even today!! Keep an eye out!

The Copic training event was packed with information. I absorbed a great deal of knowledge and got inspired to start my own Copic collection at my stamping desk. Thanks to Marianne Walker for her patience with our questions and sharing her vast store of knowledge with us. Kudos to Marianne for making it a super fun day!! You can visit her blog here to learn more than you ever wanted to know about using Copics.

When I think of Spring, I think of birds!

2009-05-08T22:34:00.001-07:00

I love to watch birds in the Spring. I have a sliding glass door in my office with a view of the valley. I have lots of different bird feeders hanging from the bottom of the deck, right where I can see them all day. My cats enjoy sitting inside looking at the "birdie buffet" outside the door. I get so much pure joy in watching all of the different kinds and colors of birds as the seasons progress.

I found a great book at amazon.com all about birds in the Northwest. The best thing about the book is that the edges of the pages are colored and the book is divided into sections according to the main color of the birds. This makes it incredibly easy to look up any bird you spot.

A friend of mine taught a class at our church's Enrichment Night for women. One of my responsibilities is to oversee the planning of these meetings, which we hold once a quarter. We usually have dinner and then we have activities as varied as crafts, service projects, cooking, quilting, seminars, and classes about different topics. My friend taught about gardening. She is an amazing gardener and has really helped us move our efforts in this department along. I wanted to make her a nice gift to say thanks.

This notebook is the result of my efforts. I was thinking while I made it that she could use it as a gardening journal. When she opened it, she said she was going to use it for exactly that purpose!! I used some patterned paper from a big package I picked up at Costco a couple of years ago.

I found the directions on SCS a while ago. One of the VSN projects in January of 2008 was to make a covered Composition notebook. I got the instructions from the VSN post for that particular challenge. These notebooks have been one of my go-to gifts ever since. They are elegant and classy, yet very inexpensive to make, and not really that time consuming either.

I thought I would use one of my favorite sets, Feathered Hope. I just love the softness of this set and the poems and sayings just touch my heart even though I have read them many times. Emily Dickinson just does that to me!

Supplies used:

Composition notebook
Costco DP
Stampin' Up Ruby Red, Certainly Celery, and Very Vanilla cardstock
Celery 1/4" grosgrain, olive organdy, and chocolate organdy ribbons from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts
Stampin' Up! Feathered Hope stamp set
Memento Tuxedo Black Ink
Prismacolor Pencils and Gamsol

Things I Love About You

2009-02-15T09:43:00.000-08:00

I saw this Dove chocolate tin at the store and decided it would make a really great altered item for my hubby for Valentine's Day. The first thing I did was took out the chocolates and disposed of them......no telling where they went! ;o) This tin measures about 12" across and cost $8 with the chocolates in it.

Next, I traced the bottom of the tin onto some retired Stampin' Up! Rose Red designer paper. I used the bottom since it is smaller than the top and would leave a bit of a border of metal around the edge of the paper after I adhered it to the top of the tin. I used red line tape to stick the paper to the metal tin.

Next I used my Cricut to cut out a bunch of hearts and shadows of heart using Very Vanilla and more of the Rose Red Designer Paper. I used solid Rose Red Cardstock for the wording shadowed with Very Vanilla. The word LOVE is cut out of Purely Pomegranate cardstock.

I wanted to make something really nice for my hubby for Valentine's day. I knew that if I made this tin, it would be something he would keep and cherish, and also something I could add to year after year. The top of the tin says, "Things I LOVE About You". Inside are lots of small hearts for "confetti", and about 20 larger hearts with space to write on. On each of the larger hearts, I wrote something I love about him. I put all of the hearts inside the tin and added some wrapped Dove chocolates (having been forced to dispose of the unwrapped ones that came with the tin). LOL

Each year, I plan to add to his collection. He's such a great husband and Dad and gives so much of himself to the church, friends, and family. He has such a generous heart and is really an amazing person. We just celebrated our 19th anniversary last month. We were HS sweethearts and were together for 4 years before we got married. He's a keeper!!

CC204 Bold & Brightly Go!

2009-02-03T16:22:00.000-08:00

I'm finally back to stamping after getting out of the groove during the holidays. We sure had a lot of snow and I had so much work to catch up on that I sort of lost my mojo. I took up other fun things, and I've been knitting like a madman. To see what I'm up to, check out my other blog!

I stamped this card for the color challenge at SCS today. I wanted to use these fun colors to the best advantage, so I used long strips of all of them. All of the brads are from our store and match the colors nicely.

Materials Used:

Cardstock: Whisper White, Gable Green, Tempting Turquoise, Pink Passion, and Lovely Lilac, all from Stampin' Up!
Prima flowers
Prismacolor Pencils, stumps, and gamsol
Stamps: Imeldabella and Papertrey Green Thumb
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black
Brads from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts in Turquoise, Light Lime, and Hot Pink

I'm glad the challenge was to use such bright colors, it makes it feel like Spring!

Yikes!!

2008-12-22T14:09:00.000-08:00

It's kind of ironic that after my last post, I get the chance to post again about how much snow we've been getting. This is a photo of our Dodge stratus in the foreground. You can see our Suburban behind it also buried in snow. Note the amount of snow piled up against the side of the car and on top. The kid in red is our 15-year-old son Stephen.

We got a nice surprise this morning when a tree limb came crashing down off of one of our fir trees, hit another branch, taking it off as well, then skewered our car.

This is the back window of the Stratus. After we got the snow and glass cleaned off and photos taken for insurance, we tried to remove the limb, but couldn't lift it. See the next photo to discover why.

The limb skewered the window and then continued into the trunk, taking out the speaker along the way. I wonder how long the line is at the insurance agency? LOL

Winter Wonderland?

2008-12-22T11:01:00.000-08:00

We have had a long string of winter storms hit us over the past 8 days. We are centered near Portland, OR. We are in the country about 20 miles west of Portland, about 40 minutes from the beaches. And, we just don't get snow!! The kids here are lucky if they get one snow a year, just enough to build a snowman. We were joking the other day that all Oregon snowmen are more mud and grass than snow, and they always have leaves stuck in them!!

Well, that's not the case this week. Our "Arctic Blast" as the news stations are calling it, began last Sunday, December 14th. It started snowing in the morning and by that evening we had about 6 inches. That's a pretty amazing snow for this area, but that was just the beginning!

The snow continued off and on all that day, and they canceled school on Monday, the 15th. Day by day the cold and snow continued and day by day they closed the schools, and our kids ended up with a whole extra week of Christmas vacation. Since the 14th, we've had snow, severe winds (with sideways snow, as my son called it), and freezing rain. On Saturday night, the 20th, we had about 1/2 inch of freezing rain that coated the snow, the trees, the roads, the cars, and everything else. Some of the photos I'll post below will show the layer of ice. Since Saturday night, we have an an additonal 12+ inches of snow for a total of probably 20 inches in all. This is just unheard of in our area.

They have closed all highways to the coast and the main highway heading east out of Portland, I-84. That highway has been closed going on 3 days now, which does not bode well for my brother-in-law and his wife who are trying to drive in from that direction for Christmas. There are severe winds in the area, causing near 0 visibility and gigantic snow drifts.

These conditions are causing us considerable shipping delays. We had only 3 days of mail service last week and no UPS or Fed Ex. We have had a stack of packages sitting since Friday waiting to go out. We are unable to get out of our driveway, with at least 20 inches on the driveway. The UPS and Fed-Ex guys will not even come on our country road. Our mail man slid into a ditch twice this past week and hasn't even attempted to come out for 2 days. It's a real mess and has pretty much shut down all of Portland and the surrounding areas.

Now for the photos (remember we've had a foot of snow since these were taken):

These are rounds cut from a tree we had to take down about 18 months ago. The one on the right is hardly covered, but the rest behind it are nearly buried in snow drifts. They measure at least 2' in diameter.

This photo shows my two youngest sons in the snow. The one in the black coat is Brandon. He is 8 years old and holding a slab of ice from the sheet of ice covering the snow.

This is a view of the hill below our house, at the top of the photo you can see our house between the trees. Isn't this a great sledding hill? The boys have all had a ton of fun sledding each day. There has been enough snow to sled for over a week and they are taking advantage of it!

My hubby took these photos. This one shows his feet breaking through the layer of ice over the snowpack. The ice is about 1/2" thick. Now we have had another foot of snow over the ice.

This is our drive way leading away from our house. As you can see, it's a steep hill going down the driveway and then a steeper and longer one going up to the road. No wonder the UPS drivers won't even try it. The road leading to our driveway is also hilly and twisty, so it's just no fun. We are content to stay here, light a fire, and sip our hot cocoa. Sadly, though, our orders can't get out!

We hope you all have a great Christmas!

Heidi~~

(And the Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts team)

My Ribbon Storage Solutions

2008-10-31T08:40:00.001-07:00

I have had ribbon storage nightmares for years!! I end up with messy drawers, tangles of ribbon, loose pieces with no home, and endless frustration. I thought carefully about my ribbon dilemma for a long time before deciding what to do about it. If you have any wall space at all, even the back of a door, this is a great storage solution! I have had a number of requests for the details of my ribbon storage, so I am finally getting smart and posting it here.

This is a view of my ribbon storage system. This is the system I use for ribbon on spools. These are made of rain gutters that I purchased at Lowe's and had them cut for me. I had them cut in 2 1/2' lengths. They gave me grief about it, but I stood my ground and made them cut it. They thought I was nuts when I told them it was for ribbon storage. The gutters are hung on pegboards. They are actually white on the back, but my hubby cut a chunk out to accommodate the kitchen cabinet on the wall (just barely visible at the top right corner of the photo). He accidentally cut out the wrong corner, so rather than get my panties in a bunch, I just said "Thanks hon!" and left it at that. I can always paint them white later. Let me back up a bit to say that my stamping space is located in a 2nd kitchen that we have in the daylight basement of our house. I'm lucky enough to have built-in cabinets, counter tops, a sink, and even an oven for those Shrinky-dink projects!

This is a closeup of my gutters. After much debating, I finally settled on this system of organization. I started by organizing according to pattern, but quickly realized it was a pain and that I'd rather organize by color. This makes it so easy to bring my project over to the gutter and choose a ribbon that fits. I don't have even a fraction of the ribbons I carry in my store down here in my storage. I add ribbons to my personal collection on an "as needed" basis. So far I have not had any problems with storing ribbons like this and love the color sorting.

I thought about installing curtain rods instead of rain gutters but there are a few problems with those. First, if you are pulling on one spool of ribbon, the ones next to it end up spinning as well and you have to end up respooling them. Second, if you want to remove a spool or you run out, you have to take all of the spools off to get to that one. For these reasons, I decided I was a rain gutter gal.

When purchasing your rain gutters, make sure to buy the ones that are shaped like a 1/2 octagon. You don't want any lips curling in on the top edges. Also, you don't have to purchase end caps (they cost more than the gutter by the time you purchase 8 of them), but I prefer the nice looking ends, and you'll need to do something to keep your spools from falling out.

The cost was about $10 for 10 feet of gutter, which I cut into 4 pieces. The end caps were somewhere in the range of $1.35 each, if I remember correctly.

I apologize for the small photo, but if you click on it, it will get bigger. I can't find my original, so I copied from my gallery at SCS. This photo shows a closeup of the hooks my hubby used to hang my gutters. (Notice the white pegboard, this was taken before our move and the ill-fated cutting error.) The hook on top is what the hooks look like when purchase from Home Depot or Lowes. The one going through the gutter is what it looks like after my hubby bent it to provide more support for the gutter. If you leave it straight like the one on top, your gutter will flop forward. Also, note the spot my hubby drilled for the hook to go through the gutter. He experimented and found the optimal place for the hole to get the gutters to stay upright and not dump the ribbon out. It's hard to see in the photo, but the hole is actually angled, not drilled straight through. It is angled in the direction that the hook is going through the gutter. Aim your drill bit the same direction as you see the hook going through in this photo, and drill from the outside in.

OK, so the gutters are all fine and great for ribbon on spools, but what about loose yardage, or sets purchased from my store? The perfect solution, in my opinion, after trying many other options are the Ribbon Rings. Here is a photo from Michelle's Blog showing her fabulous setup of Ribbon Rings.

The best things about Ribbon Rings is that they are inexpensive. They are also easily portable and sortable. I have all of my different kinds of ribbon stored by color. Michelle prefers to separate hers by ribbon type. they are easy to switch around, easy to see what you want and get just the ribbon you're looking for. They can also hold an incredible amount of ribbon in a small space. Melissa, the Ribbon Ring inventor suggests cutting 1-1 1/2 yards of each ribbon you need to store and putting it on the ring. Then you take an inventory dot and mark if you have more of that particular ribbon and store the remainder in a drawer or bin, out of the way. These are amazing, and a starter set sells for only $10!!

Feel free to send me a message if you have questions about my storage solutions.

Happy Stamping~~

2008-10-30T20:38:00.000-07:00

Everyone at SCS was making cute little spiders out of this Stampin' Up! scalloped punch. These guys are pretty self-explanatory, but here's the details anyway. The feathers are actually petals from the Cuttlebug Cut & Emboss Combo "Build a Flower". The feathers are all embossed. The waddle is the candy from the 3x3 "Halloween" die, and the arms are from the Cut & Emboss Combo "Snow Fun". I used a 1/2" circle punch for the whites of the eyes, a 1/4" punch for the pupils and a white gel pen for the highlights. The beak is hand-cut.

Materials Used:

SU Cardstock: Chocolate Chip, Close to Cocoa, Riding Hood Red, Pumpkin Pie, Marigold Morning, Wild Wasabi, Blue Bayou, Perfect Plum, Whisper White, and Basic Black
Cuttlebug and accessories listed above
1/2" circle punch, 1/4" circle punch
Mint Patties
SU Scalloped Circle Punch
White Gel Pen
ATG Adhesive and Quickie Glue Pen

2008-10-27T22:19:00.000-07:00

Michelle (sf9erfan) and I tackled the sketch on Taylored Expressions Blog today while she was at my house. It's too late to get it in the weekly look-see, but I loved this card and wanted to post it anyway.

The reindeer are from a retired Stampin' Up! set called Holiday Sampler. The sentiment is from Papertrey Ink's Take a Bough, and the little bow making my reindeer girls are from Verve Visual's Black Tie Birdie. I realized after I made this card that I'm not sure if female reindeer have antlers or not. No matter, these ones do!

To make the ties, I stuck a small piece of 3/8" chocolate satin ribbon to the back of each of the paper strips, then positioned each strip on the card front and wrapped the ribbon to the back of the chocolate chip paper and taped it down. I then tied tiny bows around each piece using gold cord. I added gold brads to the right side of each strip.

Supplies:

Paper~~SU Ski Slope DP, Chocolate Chip, Riding Hood Red, Old Olive
Ink~~Chocolate Chip, Close to Cocoa (Reindeer), Adirondack Espresso (Bows & Sentiment), Riding Hood Red, Old Olive (Watercoloring)
Accessories~~Embellishments from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts

Happy Stamping!

What Can you Put in a Tin Part 1--Teacher's Emergency Sewing Kit

2008-10-15T22:19:00.001-07:00

We started carrying these square tins in our store a while back. We all know you can use them as party favors with candy inside. Add a bow or embellishments for a quick and easy favor. But, beyond holding candies, what else are these good for? I've been thinking about this for a while and I have a few ideas, which I will post here in a series of tutorials.

I gathered together a bunch of things a teacher might need for him or herself. I made this more on the simple side since my son's 3rd grade teacher is a man. I didn't think he would be as excited about scallops as I am!! All images are from Gina K's Whimsical Autumn. I used 5/8" red and 1/4" Christmas green grosgrain around the center of the tin. The sentiment is computer generated. At the end of my tutorial series, I will post a document with all of the templates. I cut the ovals with my Nestabilities and embossed the top layer. The tiny apples are cut out with SU!'s 1/2" punch and the larger circles are a 3/4" punch.

I used black, white, blue, and pink thread. I thought these would be the most commonly used in a school. I didn't have time to get to a store or I would have looked for a small pair of folding scissors to put in the tin. The buttons are from our button collections and are threaded on a piece of our 1/8" organdy.

Here is a closeup of two of the components of the sewing kit. Both cards are 1 1/2" x 2 1/2". To make the thread card, I marked along the edges starting 3/8" from the bottom and then every 3/8" along the side, making 4 marks in all. I marked both the right and left hand sides of the card. Using my 1/4" square punch I nipped just a bit of cardstock out at each marking. This is not a full 1/2 square. To make the needle holder, I used my paper piercing template and paper piercer to poke several holes along the card in 3 columns to accommodate different needle lengths. To make the card toppers I stamped the basket of apples from Gina K's set and colored using Prismacolor pencils and gamsol. I used Creative Memories 1" punch to punch out just a portion of the basket and a 1 1/4" punch to punch out the green and red circles.

This tin was made using the 8 oz. (large) tin.

Happy stamping!

2008-10-15T21:56:00.000-07:00

My friend Diana and I needed a really quick, yet elegant favor for a church dinner we are in charge of. I came up with this simple design. This is a tri-fold project, and very easy to make.

Start with a 12" x 12" sheet of cardstock and cut it into 1/2. I used an old piece of Egglant Envy from Stampin' Up! that I had laying around. Score across the piece at 2 1/2", 7 1/2", and 8". Fold on all of the folds and glue the short flap just along the outside edges to make a pocket to hold a hot chocolate packet and a mini candy cane.

I made the top edge with an extra 1/2" width, front to back, to accommodate a baggie of marshmallows. I adhered the baggie on the inside of the top flap. I tied the packet shut with 5/8" ivory polka dot ribbon from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts.

I cut a piece of Mellow Moss cardstock 3 1/4" by 5 1/2". All images are from Papertrey Ink's Snowflake Serenade. I stamped the words in Handsome Hunter and the snowflakes in Mellow Moss. We need to make 60 of these, so we needed a super quick and inexpensive design. I think this fits the bill!

Time for Another Wedding

2008-10-09T18:24:00.001-07:00

Well, another wedding in our family this year!! This time I did not get asked to make the invitations, so all I had to make was one measly wedding card. I was going for something elegant but not too formal, and I think I hit it just right!

Supplies used:

PTI White CS
SU Copper, Basic Black, and Glossy White Paper
SU More Mustard, Really Rust & Copper ink refills
Staz-On Black Ink
7/8" Black Double Face Satin Ribbon
Anniversary Birds and Black Tie Birds from Verve Visual

Directions:

I put a few (probably about 12) drops of copper ink refill on a 1/2 sheet of glossy white paper. I soaked a cotton ball in alcohol, then added 2 drops of More Mustard & 2 drops of Really Rust ink. I dabbed the cotton ball all over the paper, making sure to get all of the drops of copper ink moved around the paper. For anyone unfamiliar with this technique is called polished stone.
While letting that dry, I decided on the dimensions for my main panel, which ended up being 3" x 4 1/4". I cut the piece to mat it with 3 1/4" by 4 1/2".
After the polished stone piece was dry, I sprayed it with hairspray. Funny that more hairspray ends up on my cards than on my hair!
I stamped the birds and sentiment in Staz-On. I then assembled the card and it's as simple as that. The finished size is 5 1/2" by 5 1/2".

Paper Piecing Goes Retro!

2008-10-07T21:47:00.001-07:00

I started this card in my head after attending the OR/WA SCS gathering on Saturday. One of the shoebox swap projects on my table involved paper piecing. This is such a simple technique and yet I rarely do it. I love this flower from a CTMH set called For You. I love this paper pack from Basic Grey called Stella Ruby. I just love the earthy colors and the stripes on this paper remind me of my Grandma's sofa when I was a kid. Good memories! The finished size on this card is 5" x 5".

To make this card, I cut a piece of So Saffron 4 7/8" x 4 7/8". I stamped the top and bottom in So Saffron using SU's Twill background stamp and sponged the edges in Close to Cocoa. I stuck just the center of the DP down to hold it still and headed over to my sewing machine. I stitched down the edges of the DP, then I also stitched up the middle of a piece of 3/8" Artichoke Grosgrain from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts. I adhered the ribbon to the paper using my ATG. I also cut leaves out of 5/8" Moss Grosgrain ribbon. The flower is stamped in Adirondack Espresso on a piece of the Basic Grey DP and cut out. The center is re-stamped, also in Espresso on So Saffron and also cut out, then covered with Glassy Glaze. I used Hunter Burlap String in the center of the buttons from the Sylish Shoes Collection. The So Saffron piece is mounted on another piece of the Stella Ruby paper.

The sentiment is from the Out on a Limb Sayings (revised larger set) from Papertrey Ink. I stamped Laughter in Ruby Red and the rest of the sentiment in Chocolate Chip.

Ways to Use it Challenge

2008-10-02T18:31:00.000-07:00

Oooh, was this card fun to make today. I actually made 3 cards for today's challenge. You can see the other two in my gallery at SCS.

The challenge was to make a card using quotes in a creative way. I love the Smarty Pants set from Stampin' Up!, and decided to use it today since it has such fun sayings. I also love Stampin' Up!'s Booglie Eyes set, which is now retired. I was wondering what kind of "friends" Frankenstein would have, and these two are just the type I would imagine he has hanging out at his house. This finished card measures about 6" x 4.5".

The Designer Paper I used is brand-new from Stampin' Up! and called Ghostly Greetings. The other papers I used in the card are Pumpkin Pie and Basic Black, and the inks are Basic Black, Kiwi Kiss, and Adirondack Pitch Black. I stamped the friends in Pitch Black and let it dry before coloring in with my Prismacolor Pencils and Gamsol.

The buttons are from the Gentle Times Collection at Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts. I threaded the buttons with our 1/8" organdy in black. I love the look I got with this!! I punched out a 3/4" circle in Pumpkin Pie and glued it to the end of my white sentiment strip, then trimmed with scissors around the circle to make the end rounded. After sticking the white strip down to the black strip, I hand cut the black to fram the orange circles. The 3/8" polka dot grosgrain and 5/8" orange grosgrain are also from our store. If I'm being honest, the jaunty angle of the sentiment strip is because I accidentally stamped the sentiment a bit crooked and I was too lazy to remake the strip. I love the look, though and some of the best things come out of accidents! LOL

Happy stamping!!

2008-10-01T18:18:00.000-07:00

I made this great set for my sister-in-law, Lisa for her birthday. I used Stampin' Up!'s retired Bali Breeze paper for the whole set. The main cardstock colors I used are Regal Rose, Old Olive, Purely Pomegranate, Pumpkin Pie, Taken with Tea, and Tempting Turquoise. This was a really fun set to design, and she had fun getting it. She was so surprised!!

Here's the deets:

The handcovered jounal used Bali Breeze DP, plus Tempting Turquoise and Pumpkin Pie cardstock. I stamped the backround on the turquoise panel using a background stamp from Cornish Heritage Farms. The letters were cut out using the Sizzlets Slim Jim alphabet. I used 3/8" Orange grosgrain ribbon from our store for the attached bookmark.
The all-purpose card set is housed in our clear boxes. I used solid cardstock with strips of DP on the left side and then tied our 7/8" organdy around the card before mounting it to a card base.
The monogram card set is also in one of our clear boxes. I used two retired SU sets, Headline Alphabet and Label Classics to create the monogram.
The 3" x 5" memo pad is stamped using SU's One of a Kind stamp set. After stamping, I pressed the entire white stamped panel into my Versamark ink pad and embossed the whole thing using Iridescent Ice embossing powder. This technique is called "Dazzling Diamond Dust". It's a really fun way to add some sparkle to a project without making a mess and leaving glitter all over the gift recipient.
The little Post-It holder is also made using the One of a Kind stamp set. I just cut out the larger flower, the punched out the smaller one and used a brad to hold them together.
To make the pens, I used a 3.25" x 1" piece of DP and rolled it up and inserted it into the barrel of the pen. I find the easiest way to do this is to remove the bottom cap from the pen, then use the ink tube to roll the paper around. The non-roller ball end of the ink tube serves as a good tool to push the paper down inside the barrel.

Two Christmas Cards

2008-10-01T17:40:00.000-07:00

It's been a busy couple of weeks with the new satin ribbons coming into our store. I've hardly had time to stamp but finally made time yesterday and today!

Michelle (sf9erfan) on SCS came over this morning with her boys. The boys played outside, eating blackberries and grapes, swinging on the tire swing, and then ended up blowing the fir needles off of my driveway on their hands and knees!!! LOL

Meanwhile, Michelle and I were inside, up to our elbows in the retired SU paper pack Wintergreen. We've done this in the past, usually with amazing results. We get together and do the SCS sketch challenge using the same paper and stamps. Today she brought over this great set from Inkadinkado. I'm loving this set! We both stamped in Versamark and embossed using dark brown embossing powder. From there, her card took a different look from mine. I used differen sides of the DP than she used. The only thing we have in common on our cards is the 3/8" chocolate satin ribbon from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts , the stamped image, and the white DP I used on the background. To take a peek at her card, click here: Michelle's Card

I designed this card for a couple of reasons. First, there is an Oregon/Washington gathering for SCS this Saturday, andI designed this card for the shoebox swap. Second, I'm loving chocolate in my Christmas cards for some reason, and I need to make about 2o more to be done for the year, so I made 10 of these for my own stash.

To make this card and get the triangles perfect, this is what I did: I cut my card base 5.5" x 11" and scored, then folded it in 1/2. The largest chocolate layer is cut 5 3/8" square. I cut two pieces of DP (Almost Amethyst and Old Olive) 5.25" square. After cutting the squares of DP, using my Fiskars paper cutter, I put the square into the paper cutter on the diagonal, so the two opposite corners were right on the cutting line. This way, when I cut, I get two even triangles. Then, I take each of the triangles and put them in the paper cutter with the longest flat side towards me and the point facing up. Then, when I cut again, I end up with 4 equal triangles that I can then use for the card. When I do it with two different papers, I can alternate them as shown in the photo. I did the same thing with solid papers for the layer directly under the snowflake.

The snowflake is embossed using dark brown embossing powder. The Polka Dot ribbon is May Arts, currently available in our ebay store and coming soon to our website. The brads are from our custom colored brad collection. These brads match Old Olive and Almost Amethyst. The sentiment is stamped in Chocolate Chip and is from Papertrey, in their Out on a Limb set.

Tag Box Tutorial

2008-09-19T17:53:00.000-07:00

Here is a tutorial I worked up today because of a request from a customer. She wanted me to do a tutorial on a box that could hold a few gift tags. I made this box very simple to replicate for anyone wanting to do them in bulk. The first step is to start with a piece of cardstock measuring 6" x 10". Lay the cardstock sideways as shown on your Scor-Pal or other scoring device. Score at 2.5", 3", 7", and 7.5".

Turn cardstock the other direction as shown. I find it difficult to score right next to the left edge of the Scor-Pal, so I scored 1/2" and 1" in from the right edge.

Next, turn your cardstock around so the unscored side is to the right and score again 1/2" and 1" from the right edge. Your project should have scoring marks just like the photo shows.

Now, cut on the scoring lines, leaving just the small square remaining. Note where I have left the square attached, on just one side, making a little tab. I have lifted up the tab so you can see better.

Cut all 4 of the corners of the project as shown, leaving tabs on all 4 corners.

Now, stamp the cardstock as desired. Since my customer is planning to make Christmas tags, I went with a Christmas look. It will not matter that the stamp doesn't stamp on the scoring lines since the project will be folded there anyway. If it bothers you, just stamp before scoring.

I wanted to make a see-through window on the backside of the box (or frontside, depending how you look at it). To accomplish this, I chose a scalloped circle from my Nestabilities set. The size doesn't matter that much, but you want to leave plenty of room around the edges of the cutout to adhere layers, acetate, etc. to the inside of the box. Cut the scalloped circle out, centering it in the 4"x 4" side of your project. If you do not have Nestabilities, you can use any circle cutter you have. Even squares would work, ovals, hearts, paisley, depending on your project theme. I had to fold one of the flaps over (on the right) in order to get the box through my Cuttlebug.

Next, I chose a solid circle that was smaller than the scalloped circle I cut. To decide which you want to use, pretend that you are going to put the smaller white circle above on top of the scalloped circle you just cut out. Then, choose another solid circle a few sizes bigger than the small circle. Place both circles on top of a piece of white cardstock and run them through the cuttlebug together.

You will end up with a circle as shown in the photo. Now, adhere the circle to the inside of your project. I used Mono Multi for this portion of the project. Make sure you turn the project over and look at it from the front to ensure proper placement of your white circle. Do this before the glue dries.

Cut a piece of acetate 3.75" x 3.75". I used my ATG to stick this down. When putting adhesive down on the project, make sure you get it far enough from the fold so that no extra adhesive will overlap the edge of the acetate. If you look closely at the photo, you can see my line of adhesive around the edge of the acetate.

Your project should look like this from the front.

Now, fold on all scoring lines, with all folds going in the direction shown in the photo. They will essentially fold in on themselves.

Put a line of sticky strip or other strong adhesive on the two edges of one of your flaps. I used Scor Tape, from Scor-Pal, coming soon to Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts.

Fold the flap up and adhere as shown. I am using a Velcro closure to keep my box shut and to allow for repeated opening and closing. To avoid damage to the box, I used only 1/4 of a velcro dot. I have found that even 1/2 dots are too strongly "hooked" on smaller boxes. To get an awesome price on hook and loop dots, click here to go to our Packaging section on our website. The Velcro clones will be loaded there soon. They sell for $1.50 for 15 full circle dots.

I stamped one of the snowflakes on white cardstock and cut it out with my Nesties, I did a scalloped circle in turquoise and another in white. After layering them I applied adhesive on only 1/2 of the medallion. Next, I added a 5mm Crystal Rhinestone to the center of the snowflake. My crystal rhinestones come on a sheet for only $1.75!! This view shows the "back" of the box. It's still a great presentation, so you can either display your wares with this side showing or the window side showing...both equally attractive.

This is the windowed size of the finished project. The finished box measures 4" x 4" x 3/4". It is large enough to hold quite a few gift tags, some small cards, candies, or even a cookie! Mmmm!! After I took the photo of the back of the box, I realized that it needed a little touch, so I opened the box and tied some Polka Dot Organdy around the top flap and closed the box again. Our Polka Dot Organdy is a great value, comes in 17 colors and what's not to love about polka dots??

Hope you enjoy the tutorial. Watch in the next day or so for a tutorial on turning our Oregon Raindrops into stunning embellishments!

Today's Limited Supply Challenge

2008-09-12T15:58:00.000-07:00

I made this card today for the Limited Supply challenge at Splitcoast Stampers. The challenge was to make a card using some kind of technique that used only paper, stamps, and ink. Yikes!! What, no embossing powder or specialty supplies?

So, I started thinking back to cards I have done using various techniques. I was reminded of some Christmas cards I did using the Versamark Resist technique. In a nutshell, you stamp your desired images on glossy cardstock, then sponge or brayer ink over the top of the stamped images. The Versamark will resist the ink, leaving you with a series of negative images. You can use this as a background or even as a main focal image.

I started with Papertrey's Guidelines set. I stamped the lines in Mellow Moss on the glossy paper. I overstamped the lines with the decorative tiles in Versamark. I sponged over the top with Mellow Moss, So Saffron, and Always Artichoke inks. I love the way it turned, out, although next time, I would leave out the Always Artichoke, because it's a lot stronger than the other two shades.

I stamped the girl from My Favorite Things "Can Ya Dig It?" set. I stamped her in Palette Noir ink on Very Vanilla Cardstock. I used my ink pads to watercolor the image and background. The colors I used are: Bashful Blue, Creamy Caramel, So Saffron, Regal Rose, Mellow Moss, and Sahara Sand. I cut around her front hand with my hobby knife and also cut out the watering can so it would look like she is holding the can. I slid the can handle between her hands and stuck it down. The tip of the can is popped up on a tiny foam dot. I also popped up the main image and the sentiment.

The burlap string and brads are from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts. The designer paper is from Basic Grey's Sugared pack.

2008-09-11T23:37:00.000-07:00

My hubby came home from a business trip tonight and told me that one of his coworkers just had twin baby boys. Actually, the wife had the babies, but you get the drift. He was...*gasp* going to go out and BUY a card...*gasp*. I think I would die if I had to walk into a Hallmark and purchase a greeting card. I might have a seizure or something.

Anyway, I assured him that I could work up a quick card tonight, and this is the result. I'm pretty proud of myself for coming up with a sentiment for the inside that fit the occasion. In Stampin' Up!'s Bundled in Love, there is a saying that begins, "A new little someone sent from above." I used a marker on the stamp and omitted the "A" at the beginning, to make it say "new little someone, then I added an "s" by hand, so it now says "new little someones sent from above." I almost broke my arm patting myself on the back. LOL

Here's the details:

Stamps: Stampin' Up Bundled in Love, Bundle of Joy, and Fancy Flexible Phrases, Papertrey Corners & Borders Circles
Ink: Palette Noir, Stampin' Up! Ballet Blue
Paper: Stampin' Up! Ballet Blue, Whisper White, and Bashful Blue
Accessories: Cuttlebug Swiss Dots folder, Nestabilities, Paper Piercer, Ribbons from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts
I used my Ballet Blue ink pad and watercolor brush to watercolor the giraffes. The ribbons are 3/8" polka dot grosgrain and 3/16" gingham, both in light blue.

Moo-ry Christmas!

2008-06-16T13:45:00.000-07:00

I have had this Penny Black stamp for a number of years and just touched it to ink this past weekend. I joined the Christmas Card Challenge at SCS a few years ago and it has been a great help to get me to finish my Christmas cards each year, usually with plenty of time to spare.

For those of you unfamiliar with this challenge, I'll 'splain: The idea is to determine how many Christmas cards you will need and commit to stamp about a 10th of them every month, starting in January, so you will finish them in October and have less hustle and bustle and hassle during the holidays. I usually need to stamp about 150 cards, so it's a huge undertaking. I used to stamp 100+ of the same card design until a couple of years ago when I grew bored with it and decided to make a minimum of 10 designs. Often, I will also stamp a Christmas card as one of the weekly color combo or sketch challenges and add it to my stash. To visit the Christmas Card Challenge forum at SCS, click here. You can join at any time, even though it's 1/2 way through the year.

I had fallen a bit behind in my challenge cards, so this past weekend, I sat down and completed about 50 cards and I have now finished 90 cards of the 150 I need for this year.

To make this cute card: Cut a 5.5" x 12" piece of red cardstock from a 12"x 12" sheet. Score across the strip at 2.5" from one end and 4" from the other. The larger fold will be at the top of the card and contains the cow image.

Next, I stamped a white panel with the Cow background from Cornish Heritage Farms using Black Palette Ink. My friend Chris Franco, a TAC demo got me hooked on this ink. It's my first time using it and I do like it, though I may have gotten a darker image using SU craft ink. This panel is cut 1/4" smaller than the lower flap of the card, so 5.25" x 2.25". The upper panel has Glorious Green as the first layer, measuring 3 7/8" x 5 3/8". The black layer is 1/8" smaller in each direction, and the white panel is 1/8" smaller than the black panel. I stamped the cow on the right side of the white panel also using Palette Ink.

After that, I pierced the corners for a touch of interest. The 5/8" polka dot organdy ribbon, red and black gingham, and gold cord are all from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts. I tried and tried to find a stamp that says "Moo-ry Christmas", but after an unsuccessful search, I resorted to my computer and printer. I used a Wild West type of font and printed out enough copies for the cards I was making. I used my Nestabilities to cut out the 3 ovals. I centered the smallest oval over the sentiment and then cut it out and ran it back through to emboss it around the edges.

I adhered the cow image panel to the green panel, then wrapped the polka dot ribbon around the side and taped it on the back, then adhered both panels to the top of the card, and the cow print to the bottom. I adhered the 3 layers of the tag together and punched a 1/8" hole off center and tied the red & black gingham and gold cord to the tag. The tag is popped up on foam tape. Finally, I fastened the card shut with 1/2 of a velcro dot.

To see my other 3 card designs from this weekend, visit my gallery at Splitcoast Stampers by clicking here.

Tutorial For a Woven Ribbon Card

2008-06-08T19:58:00.000-07:00

I have had many, many requests for directons for the woven card in our gallery for our polka dot ribbon contest. The fabulous card in question won the contest for best card and was made by Ann Lind. You can click here to go to the gallery which includes her card. Ann sent me detailed directions and I have followed them here with a few changes.

First, I decided to make a square card. My finished card is 5.5" x 5.5". First I cut a piece of white cardstock 4.5" x 4.5". You can see in the photo that I put a line of adhesive around the outer edges. I used my ATG, but mono or snail would work fine also.

Next, I started cutting strips of ribbon to start the weaving process. I chose Daffodil, Turquoise, and Azalea from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts. Clicking here will take you to our organdy page. I chose these colors because they are close to Primary colors and will make green, purple, and orange where they cross. Ann suggested using white ribbon (or solid colors) as a base if you are going to be weaving with polka dot organdy ribbons. Begin sticking on the strips of ribbon, starting at the center.

Continue sticking on strips of ribbon until the majority of the card is covered. It doesn't show too well in the photo, but I found it worked best to leave a tiny bit of open space between the strips to allow the weave to lie nice and flat. At this point, Ann stitched down the ribbons to keep them in place.

Once you have placed all of the strips in one direction, begin weaving strips in the other direction in an over-under pattern. I found it easiest to pull up the end of each crossing strip as I wove the ribbons under them. I simply restuck the ribbons to the adhesive as I worked.

Continue weaving until the card is covered. After finishing to this point Ann stitched once again to hold down the second layer.

Cut strips of white cardstock 1/4" wide and 4.5" long. I used this step instead of the stitching steps Ann used. Cover the back of the strips with ATG or other adhesive. Stick them over the top of the ribbons to secure your weaving. This finished piece is 4.5" x 4.5".

Next, trim the excess ribbons from the edge of your piece using nice, sharp scissors.

Cut a piece of turquoise cardstock 5"x5" and center a Nestibility circle over the cardstock. Run the piece through your Cuttlebug or similar device. You could also cut a circle using the CM cutting system or any similar tools.

Cut a piece of cardstock 11" x 5.5". Score and fold in half, this will be your card base.

Adhere the woven piece to the card base, in the center.

Adhere the turquoise piece over the woven piece.

Cut a piece of Pixie Pink cardstock 4.75" x 4.75". I randomly stamped mine with the flowers from One of a Kind by Stampin' Up!. After stamping, cut a scalloped circle in the center using Nestabilities. I made the scalloped circle slightly larger than the circle cut out of the turquoise piece.

Adhere the pink piece over the remainder of the card.

To finish the card, I cut a scalloped oval out of white and a regular oval out of Pixie Pink. The sentiment is also from One of a Kind and stamped in Tempting Turquoise. I added three jaunty ribbon tails to the back of the tag and adhered to the card.

Thanks to Ann for sending in this great card and sharing the instructions. Enjoy making your own versions. Please feel free to submit your artwork to us at pinkhedgehgopapercrafts@gmail.com. We will make a special Woven Ribbon gallery to hold your creations.

Happy Stamping~~Heidi

Wedding Revisons

2008-04-24T09:46:00.000-07:00

Here's the latest revisions to the wedding card for Scot and Destiny. This is basically the same card as my last one. The finished size is 5.5" x 5.5". I will be using a different wheel on the front but I didn't happen to have the wheel Destiny likes. We're also eliminating the layer of white on the front to see if she likes that better. I also used Brilliant Blue paper and a wider ribbon in the same color.

Wedding Announcements Round II

2008-03-25T17:08:00.000-07:00

After a couple of color changes and design changes, here is my 2nd design. The card is a center-fold card measuring 5 1/2" x 5 1/2". The color of cardstock I used is Almost Amethyst and the ribbon is Iris from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts. I embossed the two sides of the front using my Cuttlebug Textiles folder. I embossed the leaf (Art of Life by Stampin' Up!) using gold embossing powder, but both the bride and I think silver is a better choice. I also personally think that a wider ribbon of the same color would suit the scale of the card better.

Let me know what you think Scot and Destiny!

2008-03-24T16:21:00.000-07:00

I have had so many requests for photos of "The Hedgehog Den". This is my name for the warehouse that I store all of my goodies in for my website. I have turned my entire garage into a warehouse and packing center. I'm including a couple of photos below, but no matter how hard I try, I just can't seem to do it justice through photos. You just have to see it in person. I'm happy to have anyone who lives locally stop by for a visit, or if you happen to be in town. Just drop me an e-mail and I'll be happy to have you over for "show and tell"!!

My friend Diana came over for the first time and caught her first glimpse of the grosgrain ribbon tails hanging over the edges of the bins and said, "Be still my heart!" That about sums it up, it's a fabulous sight to see all of these friendly ribbons winking and smiling from their bins. Can you tell I love ribbons?

This is the grosgrain aisle. I have one color family per shelf. I got these shelves from Ikea, and I really love them. They are highly adjustable, all of the shelves can be adjusted up or down in 1 inch increments. The coolest part is that you purchase the ends separately from the shelves and you only buy what you need. One of my pet peeves is shelving when you can never get enough shelves to hold shorter items and you waste potential storage space. Traditional bookcases always drive me nuts!

These bins hold my brads, waiting to be counted. The counted sets are on the bottom shelf at the far wall. I also have my button stash here as well. Watch in the next couple of weeks for lots of new items including 21 different button color collections. These shelves are about 7 feet tall and just packed with bin after bin of goodies ready to send out.

2-4-6-8 Box Tutorial

2008-03-11T14:15:00.000-07:00

Finally, as promised, here is the first in a series of tutorials on using some of the products on our website. This project uses a 6x8 clear bag, click here to see our full line of economically prices clear bags. The products and stamps used are: Stampin' Up! So Saffron & Purely Pomegranate cardstock and Ginger Blossom designer paper. I also used Groovy Guava and Purely Pomegranate ink and the Embrace Life stamp set. The ribbon used is Pink Hedgehog Paper Craft's Raspberry 7/8" organdy ribbon. Click here to see our organdy ribbon.

Step 1: Cut a piece of cardstock 8.5" x 8.5". I stamped randomly all over the cardstock using Purely Pomegranate ink.

I used my Scor Pal to score at 2", 4", 6", and 8". This leaves a 1/2" strip along one side.

Turn the cardstock 1/4 turn and score at 1.5".

Cut along the score lines just up to the 1.5" score line, making a series of tabs along the bottom of the cardstock piece.

Cut a piece of cardstock 4.5" x 2". Score at 2" and 2.5".

Use an oval cutter to cut a window in the lower center of one panel. For best results, leave the cuts towards you and cut the oval in the 2nd full 2" section. This will leave your seam on the back of the box. I used Creative Memories Cutting System to make my hole.

Cut a piece of designer paper 2" x 2". Here you can see both sides of the Ginger Blossom paper by Stampin' Up!.

Adhere paper to the small cardstock piece. It should fit perfectly onto one end of the piece. You only need one piece but I showed two here using both sides of the designer paper.

Fold on all score lines. place adhesive on the 1/2" strip along the edge of the cardstock, including down onto the cut portion. I used my ATG gun. The adhesive is plenty strong to hold the box together.

Fold the box and adhere with the 1/2" strip on the inside of the box.

Fold the ends of the box, folding the sides in, then the back, then the front.

Place a line of adhesive on the outer edge of the front flap and seal the box shut.

Adhere the smaller piece of cardstock to the back of the inside of the box, leaving the designer paper side free to fold over the top and in front of the box. Press in the top sides of the box similar to a milk carton and fold the designer paper flap over the top and to the front of the box. Use 1/2 of a velcro dot to secure the flap.

To finish the box, I filled a 4"x 6" clear bag with caramels and placed it inside the box. I tied a bow around the 1/2" fold on top of the box using 7/8" Raspberry organdy from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts. I cut two ovals using my Nestabilities. The larger one is cut from Purely Pomegranate cardstock and the smaller from So Saffron. I stamped using the same flower stamp and Groovy Guava ink, the sentiment is stamped using Purely Pomegranate ink. Adhere the sentiment oval to the front of the flap.

Weddings R Us!!

2008-03-06T20:55:00.000-08:00

I've been absent from my blog for quite a while. This is for several reasons:

Our business has really taken off and kept us hopping!
We have lots and lots of new products coming up on our website click here to visit our store.
The flu bug.....grrrr!
My sister is getting married in May and I just finished tying the last ribbon onto 400 announcements!!! See the announcement below.
My brother-in-law is getting married in August, so I am now making more announcements for him.

Watch this week and into the coming weeks for a series of tutorials on using some of the new products in our store. Tomorrow I plan to post a unique twist on a 2-4-6-8 box. At least I think it's unique and the design is from my own head.

This is my sister Mary's card. Their wedding colors are Moss and Eggplant. The card size is 4.75" x 6.75". To make the window, I used Creative Memories square punches. I punched a 1-inch square in Elegant Eggplant cardstock. I then put the cardstock back into a 1.5-inch punch, holding the punch upside down, in order to see where I was punching. That created a little eggplant frame. I punched a hole in the card front using the 1.25-inch punch. Using my Sakura Quickie Glue Pen, I traced around the inside of the hold in the card itself and adhered the frame. The frame is glued on the inside of the card.

The stamp sets used are all by Stampin' Up! They are Terrific Tulips, Watercolor Garden (butterfly), Little Shapes (square stamped in Mellow Moss inside the card, seen through the window), and Friend to Friend (Poem). I took the cardstock to a copy center before cutting and had them print the inside text. The tulips are actually a 3-step stamp. First I stamped the large part of the stem with Always Artichoke, then overstamped the leaf with Mellow Moss, then stamped the bloom with Elegant Eggplant.

The ribbon I used is 5/8" ivory organdy from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts.

Here's my first prototype for Scot and Destiny. I embossed the center panel of Very Vanilla cardstock with the Cuttlebug Textile embossing folder. I also embossed three lines on the edge of the card using my Scor Pal. The rose is from the Stampin' Up! stamp set To Have and To Hold. I stamped using copper ink and embossed using copper embossing powder. I cut out and embossed the ovals with my Nestabilities Ovals. The ribbon is 3/8" Rust organdy from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts. This card also measures 4.75" x 6.75".

Storage jars now available online!!

2008-01-30T21:38:00.000-08:00

Click here to go to Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts. Our storage jars are now available for purchase on our site.

We also just added 1/4" and 1/8" solid organdy. The wider widths of grosgrain are also available in many of our colors. Watch in the coming weeks for the remainder of the colors as well.

Brad and Eyelet Storage Presale!!

2008-01-22T09:27:00.000-08:00

We have just purchased a number of sets of brad and eyelet storage containers. We're holding a presale on these great little jars. For a limited time only, you can purchase a set of 75 of these jars for only $20 plus shipping. We have about 20 sets on hand, but we will order more if there is a bigger demand during the presale. Sets of 25 jars are being presold for $8 each, plus shipping.

We're offering sets of 75 because we carry 59 colors, plus we're ordering 12 more colors and you'll have extra to store your existing stash. Everyone is asking how I'm storing these little guys. I have found the perfect storage solution. These jars fit really well into this mini drawer unit: Rubbermaid Drawer.

The jars are perfectly sized to hold a 1/2" punch on top, held on with a glue dot. I plan to punch out paper in the matching colors and put them on the tops of all of my jars for quick identification.

The regular price is $25. These adorable jars measure just over 1.5" high with the caps on, and about 3/4" in diameter. The cap is a snap-on, pliable plastic. The caps are very secure, but easy to get on and off. The photo shows 100 brads of each color in the jars, and 200 black. They would be perfect to store 50 brads and 50 eyelets of the same color.

To pre-order a set of these jars, send me an e-mail to pinkhedgehogpapercrafts@gmail.com. The first 20 sets will ship right away and the others will take about a week to arrive and will be shipped out at that point.

2008-01-16T23:38:00.000-08:00

This is a photo of my light box I use for my website photography. It's an ugly affair, but it gets the job done. It's about 18 inches on every side. We built it from PVC pipe and then stretched white nylon tent material over the outside. We can aim lights at the sides, or swivel these clip on lights around to the front to shine directly on the subject being photographed. If you are photographing something shiny or that will glare, you'll need to shine the lights at the outside of the tent instead.

I have found that I still need to use a flash to get the best color and detail. With my Nikon D40X, I can adjust the Flash Compensation, which basically lowers the output of the flash so that the subject doesn't get washed out and lose its vibrant color.

First, here is a photo taken with just the floodlights, no flash. This is 150 watts total, two 75 watt daylight bulbs.

I first tried -3 on the Flash Compensation and this is what I got:

As you can see, the photo is dark and very yellow. I had both of the floodlights on the front of the box aimed directly at the card and still the light quality is very poor.

Next, I took this photo at -2 on the flash compensation. The color is better, but not great, and the photo is still too dark and the colors are not well represented. For those familiar with Stampin' Up! colors, the card is Apricot Appeal, Sage Shadow, and Rose Red.

Here's the final photo. The only editing I have done is cropping out some of the background and adding the watermark. The color is much better, but not washed out. Rose Red is a difficult color to photograph in it's true form anyway.

Thus we reach the end of my photo tutorial 101. Now that I have things figured out, you can expect to see the contest submissions posted on my website any day. I'm also starting a gallery of my work as well.

Watch next month for two new contests coming to Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts. Here are a couple of hints: Polka Dots.....Christmas/Holidays.....now what's that about? Watch in early February for the announcement!

2007-12-06T19:28:00.000-08:00

I designed these shaker ornaments a few years ago. I've updated them for this year. I'm teaching how to make these at a class this weekend. All ribbons are from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts. Stamps are all Stampin' Up!

Here are the directions:

Each ornament takes:
2 qty.-2.5 inch squares colored cardstock
1 qty.-2 1/8-inch square window sheet
1 qty.-2.25-inch white or light cardstock
Embossing Buddy
Fillers (micro beads, glitter, confetti)
Foam Tape
Cording
Alene's thick tacky glue (thick is important, it's a white bottle with pink label.)

Cut 2-inch circle in center of square for each ornament. Leave one square uncut. Stamp the desired image in the center of white cardstock. Place window sheet over round hole. Using narrow foam tape, place strips of tape along the edges of the window sheet. Put the strips 1/2 on the window sheet and 1/2 on the cardstock. Make sure the strips of tape fit snugly against each other. (I cut 3/4-inch tape from Home Depot in fourths lengthwise and it was perfect.)

Leave the backing on the top side of the foam tape. Rub the embossing buddy on the window sheet to reduce static. Fill the little pool you've created with desired fillers. Peel the backing from the tape, placing the ends of the cord on the tape in the corner, making a loop. Place the white cardstock on the tape, with the image side down. Squiggle the tacky glue over the back of the white cardstock and adhere the 2nd piece of colored cardstock to the back of the ornament. Wait about 10 minutes for the glue to set and you're finished.

3 More Designs Completed!!

2007-12-02T20:23:00.000-08:00

This little Penguin is from Perky Penguins by TAC. The "be merry" is from Warm Words by Stampin' Up! I used my Snowflakes folder and my Cuttlebug for the background. The photo corners are a Sizzix die. Polka dot organdy and satin edge organdy ribbons are from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts. I used my SU inks to watercolor the penguin after stamping with Staz-on.

These adorable reindeer are from SU's Holiday Sampler. I just love these little guys and have been looking for the right setting for them. I think I found it!! The background is SU's Twinkle wheel, wheeled onto Close to Cocoa cardstock in Close to Cocoa ink. Colored cardstock is from SU in Garden Green Chocolate Chip, and Rose Red. Matching brads and ribbons are from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts. Striped DP is from an unknown source, though it's probably from a DCWV Stack.

I got the idea to put a Sizzix frame around the snowman in this Cuttlebug background. I'm pretty happy with the results! I stamped my SU Canvas background in Lovely Lilac onto Whisper White cardstock. I then die cut the frame using my Sizzix die. The matching brads are from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts. Striped Organdy ribbon in white with silver stripes and purple polka dot organdy are also from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts. The little snowflake is a Cuttlebug die. I added a touch of bling to the center of the snowflake and hung it from the ribbons using a silver jump ring. Paper color is Lovely Lilac from Stampin' Up!

Three Down Four to Go!!

2007-11-25T16:32:00.000-08:00

Well, I just finished my 3rd set of 10 cards!! They're all pretty simple and took me a few hours to complete all of them.

This card uses Stampin' Up!'s new set Merry & Bright from the Holiday Mini. I used the Cuttlebug Snowflakes folder for the background. I cut the smaller ovals using Sizzlets dies, the scalloped oval is the Mega Marvy punch. The snowman is watercolored using Twinkling H2O's. Paper colors include Tempting Turquoise and Orchid Opulence. Ribbons are from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts: Polka Dot Organdy in White with White Dots & May Arts Silver Cord.

This card is made from a set of premade embossed cards and envelopes. The card had a blank square in the center of an embossed grid. I sponged Bashful Blue ink around the outside of the square. I stamped the snowflake (Stampin' Up! The Snowflake Spot) in Night of Navy craft and embossed with Navy embossing powder. I used the following ribbons from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts: 1/4" Navy Organdy, May Arts Silver Cord, and Light Blue Gingham.

This card also uses the Cuttlebug Snowflake folder. The large circle is a Sizzlets die, the scalloped circle and snowflaker are Cuttlebug dies. The oval is a Stampin' Up! punch. I stamped "sparkle" (Stampin' Up! Warm Words) using Brilliant Blue craft ink and embossed using Hologram Highlights embossing powder. Ribbons used are from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts and include satin edge organdy with metallic stripe and May Arts gold cord.

7 Cards in 7 Days!!

2007-11-25T09:22:00.000-08:00

I have been so busy the last few months with the move and building the business website, packing and shipping orders. I realized a few days ago.....ack.....we are nearly in December and I still have only about 20 Christmas cards made.

I am therefore issuing myself a challenge! I will complete 10 each of 7 designs, for a total 0f 70 cards, which will give me enough Christmas cards for this year. Keep an eye out here and I will post a photo of each card as I complete 10 of them. Hopefully I can complete it in less than 10 days!

OK, I'm off to stamp!

Christmas Specials at Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts!!

2007-11-17T00:07:00.000-08:00

In celebration of getting our 87, yep, you read correctly, our 87 colors of grosgrain ribbon in stock and ready to ship, we'll be offering the following holiday specials now through January 1st.

Free gift with every order, no matter how small! Every order at www.pinkhedgehogpapercrafts.com will always receive a free gift. For this holiday season, the free gift is our mini grab-bag. This adorable goodie bag is stuffed with over 5 yards of assorted ribbons and either 50 eyelets or 50 brads.
Free striped organdy set with every purchase of solid grosgrain ribbon over $20. You will receive a full 1 yard set of this amazing ribbon. We're certain you'll fall in love with it, just as we have.
Free full sized grab-bag with every $50 purchased on our site. You will receive a free grab-bag for every $50. If your order is $100, you'll receive 2 bags, and so on. The grab bags are a $5 value!

Eyelets are in!!

2007-10-18T20:45:00.000-07:00

The individual colors of eyelets are now in stock in our store! We also have color family sets as well.

Watch this weekend for grosgrain! We'll start with 1/4" and add more widths in the next month. At first we'll only have individual colors, but hopefully our final shipment will arrive at the end of the week or early next week. At that point, we'll be offering sets and we'll even have a sale!

2007-10-12T15:25:00.001-07:00

I was designing a card today for the OR/WA SCS gathering. This was my first design, but I switched to more fall colors for the swap.

The stamp sets in this card are Heartfelt Thanks, Aida Cloth background, and Autumn (thanks). I used SU's Regal Rose, Rose Red, and Always Artichoke watercolor crayons on the bold image. I colored the outline stamp with my Handsome Hunter and Rose Red markers. From the photo, you can barely tell, but there are gold Stickles in the center of the flower.

The ribbons are Cranberry 3/8" organdy from Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts. I also used a new satin edge organdy I will be carrying on my site in the next week or so. I must say, I love ribbons, and this one makes me particularly thrilled. The combination of organdy, satin edge, and gold stripe are just amazing!!

The paper colors used are Purely Pomegranate and Always Artichoke.

Shipping Update

2007-10-12T15:19:00.000-07:00

All brads and eyelets have now shipped. I have 3 remaining participants who sent checks recently and they have not yet had a chance to clear the bank. I will be shipping those sets next week.

If you did not receive a notification e-mail from PayPal and you paid via PayPal, check your payment for tracking information.

Thanks everyone!!

Remember you can still purchase them on my site (link to the right). You can also purchase individual colors to replenish your sets or for special projects. I also have 48 colors of organdy ribbon in 3 widths. I'll have 86 colors of grosgrain coming soon as well!