Still Kicking!

Believe it or not, I am still kicking around and I am still crafting! I don't make as many cards nowadays because I'm trying desperately to catch up on my Project Life. I'm only about 2 years behind now, but that's not what this post is about. I got a watercolor set in one of my card kits from Studio Calico quite a few months ago and have been meaning to try it out. The card from Betsy inspired me so I just CASEd it. At first I was using the crappy brush that came in the set. It was absolutely awful and shed worse than my puppy, but then I remembered I had an aqua painter from Stampin' Up! Worked like a charm! And I didn't have to keep rinsing it off in a mug of murky water either! Till next time my fellow card makers! 

FTL #266

I love me a simple sketch! What I don't love is how it my end products always look like they only took 10 minutes when in reality it took me 1 hour and 10 minutes. I rant on this all the time so why stop now? That bloody cupcake stamp set and coordinating paper punch... Why did I buy you?!? First I had to stamp the images, then punch them out, then layer them. Not a big deal except that the punch includes all 6 pieces to the cupcake. And you can't change how it punches... Not a big fan at all. It's no wonder I waited, what? 2 years to use it? Anyways that's enough ranting for a Tuesday evening. Here's my take on Fall to Layout #266. Have a good evening! 

FTL 262

A quick post before I head off to bed! Here's my take on this week's Fall to Layout #262. Happy Canadian Thanksgiving everyone! 

Hello Handsome

I have 3 card kits sitting around that I haven't touched yet and it's driving me crazy! Pair that with little bits and pieces of old kits and I'm on crafting supply overload. This stamped image is from the Valley High Card Kit. You know it's bad when I have no idea what month the kit came out in... 

FTL 260

Happy Sunday evening everyone! You know it's a productive day when I am able to get work on a card! I thought this Fall to Layout 260 would be easy breezy, but it took a lot more creative juices than I thought. I had a hard time with the specks on the side. I originally had cute little enamel dots all over but didn't like it so I peeled them off. Then I took the plunge and used some Liquid Pearls and you all know there's no changing your mind with those suckers. So I added. And I added. And I added a few more. I don't love it, not one bit. But the deed is done and I am ready for a late dinner. Have a great week everyone! 

Card Rack

It seems like all my posts for the past year have started with, "I'm still alive!" Well I most definitely am still alive and although I'm not crafting as much as I used to, it still plays a part in my life! Last spring I took the leap to ask a locally owned boutique owner if she was interested in carrying my cards to sell. Fast forward a year and a half and I'm still there! Apple Box Boutique is this cute little shop that carries a whole assortment of goodies from Annie Sloan Chalk Paint to Barefoot Venus Bath & Body products. The owner, Leanne, is one of the nicest, sweetest ladies I have ever met. The friendship was instant and I am so grateful to have met her. Since my cards have been carried in her store for over a year now, we looked at some options on how to increase their visibility so my hubby built us a custom card rack, I painted it with some Annie Sloan Chalk Paint and now it sits tall and proud inside Leanne's store. 

FTL #241

It's been a while since I've done a Fall to Layout Challenge on Clean & Simple Stamping's blog. As I mentioned in previous posts, I am now a subscriber to Studio Calico's monthly card kit and I'm loving the simplistic cards I've been making with these kits. I'm also getting the chance to use a lot of new products that I've never experimented with before. This card uses chipboard, transparent die cuts and gold plastic stars. Have a great long weekend everyone and hop by FTL's blog to play along! 

Studio Calico Card Kit: Front Row

I had very hard time with the Front Row Card Kit because the "Call Me Maybe" image really wasn't my cup of tea. It was definitely not easy using it and I foresee myself never using that stamp again. That's the fun thing about these monthly card kits though. It surprises me with items I would have never chosen myself and it forces me to go outside of my comfort zone. Sometimes the results are good and sometimes, not so much. The next month's kit, Neverland, was another difficult month for +Jinnee Barazzuol and I, but I'll post the cards when I hit at least 4 cards with the kit. I'm only sitting at 2. Have a great weekend! 

Studio Calico - 34th Street Card Kit

It's been quiet here in StampNStuffland, but I assure you I am still alive and well! I officially left Stampin' Up! January 31st, 2013. It's been a great 5 years but I really felt like it was time to let that piece of pie go uneaten. I've been picking away at it for quite some time now and I remember October 2011, when I was busy with the wedding and I let my demonstrator status fall into pending, I panicked. I had thought about quitting but when the decision was sprung on me by me not meeting my quarterly minimum, I realized I wasn't ready. I couldn't put my finger on why I wasn't ready but fast forward to October 2012 and I'm still wavering about my decision. It was finally December when I made the leap and told my amazing group of stamping friends that I've called it quits. It really has given me me peace of mind and allowed me to pursue other things with my papercrafting. One of those new adventures is signing up for a monthly card kit from Studio Calico with my good friend, Jinnee. I am really enjoy the new challenge of creating something with items I didn't hand-pick. Below are some photos of cards made using December's card kit, 34th Street. Some of the cards used Stampin' Up! and Smash Book products and some of the cards are Jinnee's! 

FTL #221

I got to spend a lovely afternoon with my good friend Jinnee from Sketch Cuts. We got our December order from Studio Calico, called 34 Street Card Kit and we decided to make a pact with our new subscriptions to their card kits. We would get together monthly to use our new kits rather than have supplies accumulate and collect dust. That's exactly what we did today! Our goal was to make 8 cards since there was 4 sheets of card stock in the kit but we only got to 3. I chose to use Fall To Layout #221 as a layout so here is my take on it! 

Ribbon Color Trends & JUGS #161

Happy Sunday everyone! It's amazing how the extra hour of time can make you feel like you've gained eons of time! While my hubby is busy with renovations, I'm sitting in the basement surrounded by my beloved paper and stamps. Here's a combined challenge which I haven't done in a very long time.  The sketch is simple to use and the colors are uber spring, which is a nice change from all the snow we have outside right now. I forgot how much I loved the stamp set Elements of Style. I usually stamp it with Versamark and use chalk to color in the image but using markers to color the stamp work just as well! The frame and sentiment is from Papertrey Ink's Framed stamp set. This is my take on Just Us Girls Challenge #161 and Embellish Magazine's Ribbon Color Trends Challenge. 

JAI 142

I haven't participated in a card challenge in ages. There's been way too many other crafting musts in my life right now and card making wasn't making the list on top 3 things to do. But with my entire basement dedicated to paper crafting, I felt the need to get back into it. The crochet hook will just have to wait till another night. I know this whole "Keep Calm..." catch phrase has been going around like mad, but I couldn't help but purchase the darn stamp set. This is from Stampin' Up! called Carry On. The little cupcake is from the stamp set Create & Cupcake. Can you believe I've owned this stamp set and the coordinating punch since it was released but it's the first time I've inked up this up? You know you have it bad when you haven't inked over half your stamp sets up but you continue to buy more. Anyways, this is my take on Just Add Ink's sketch #142. Have a great weekend and remember to turn your clocks back an hour! 

October 29!

Exciting News from Stampin’ Up!

15% off all STAMPS – for ONE DAY ONLY!

This is a first as far as I know for Stampin’ Up!   On Monday, October 29, 2012 Stampin’ Up! is having a ONE DAY stamp sale!  For 24 hours only, almost every stamp we sell will be reduced 15 percent! We’re calling this the Sell-A-Stamp Spooktacular, and the goal is to sell more stamps in a single day than ever before.

This means all stamps in the current catalogs including

• Background stamps
• Personalized name stamps
• Cookie press stamps
• Single-image stamps (our new trial program which includes 10 more stamps including 3 brand new ones).  Single Stamps are all shown in my online store Stamps/Single Stamps

The sale DOES NOT include

• Hostess sets
• Bundled stamp sets
• Digital stamp brush sets

If you'd like to order something, you can do so online or email me! 

Halloween Treats

This is an easy peasy project for Halloween if you're wanting to spice up those  appetizers for your party. These pinwheels have been around since Stampin' Up! came out with Simply Scored. Just cut 1"x12" strips of paper, score every 1/2" and then flip the paper over and score every 1/4". Then fold along the score lines (remember the bump gets folded into the middle of the fold) alternating like an accordion. Cut off one of the last 1/4" panels and attach some Sticky Strip to it. Glue together and punch out a 1 1/2"circle as a base. You can try using several pieces of Sticky Strip on the circle or use a Sticky Sheet. Push the centre of the paper down and while keeping the circular shape, put your punched out circle down to secure the pinwheel. Add a sentiment, tape onto wooden sticks and viola! Happy Halloween! 

Circles!

I'm thrilled with how the first card turned out. Then I decided to try and jazz up the second one. Definitely don't love it as much but I had gone through all the trouble of lining up the circles to punch out and you all know how much I hate wasting. The circular flower stamp is from the stamp set, Just Believe. I used a Stamp-A-Ma-Jig to line up the pattern but I think I would've liked it more if they were random. 

Scraps Again.

More cards that use up scraps. I'm really enjoying the versatility of the "Sending you" sentiment. The stamp sets used are Stampin' Up's Mixed Bunch and Papertrey Ink's Big & Bold Wishes. 

Little Leaves

Remember when I CASEd Andrea at Work in Progress? You can see the blog post here. I really liked the idea of the negative silhouette, but cutting out the stamped image to get the effect was just way too much work. I shrank down the square and used the Little Leaves die instead and it turned out great! Saved me tons and tons of time and grief. 

Dots, Dots, Dots!

Just wanted to share a card I made a couple months ago for my friend, Amanda. She just started as a stylist with Stella & Dot and as part of her great customer service, she gives all her hostesses a thank you card! You can see some of the gorgeous jewelry here. Beware though because I spent a lot when I hosted a show! 

Words, Words, Words.

I absolutely adore Crumb Cake. I love how it's neutral enough to use everywhere but not so plain that it's blah. Here I've CASEd the lovely BeStempelt. I think she's German? I'm totally guessing based off the blog's foreign language. I really like how her image was stamped onto a longer piece of card stock. Unfortunately, I looked and looked but couldn't find a stamp that had a nice long stem like hers. Instead of actual pearls like she used, I used Liquid Pearls. Remember those? The trick to having them not look like little pointy pieces of poop or a cold nipple is after you've applied it, hold your card stock up face up and flick it from underneath a few times. This settles the liquid a bit and makes it look more rounded. 

Birthday Love

I recently used an American Crafts scrapbook layout as inspiration for both scrapbook pages and cards! These cards actually threw me for quite a look. First off, I made the blue one but when I went to put the sentiment using rub-ons, I ran out of room!!! The darn doily was too far over. I couldn't salvage it no matter what I did because I glued the doily on with liquid Tombow. The paper ripped to shreds and took the card front with it! So then I set out to make another one. This time, I got all confused with my words! The bottom blue card was supposed to say "birthday wishes" but then I started putting the word "happy"! I screwed up twice so ended up using way more rub-ons than needed. In the end, it turned out quite cute! Here's the original link to the inspiration.