Tuesday, April 27, 2010

The "no ink" challenge


Here's another card with two of the new colors. Since we don't have matching inks yet, it's kind of a fun challenge to come up with cards that don't use any ink. Lots of die cutting and punching going on! :)

I have to say, I'm in love with this card. It's my favorite that I've made with the new colors. I don't know if I'll be able to send this one out!


~Supplies~ (All by Stampin' Up!)
Stamps: N/A
Ink: N/A
Paper: Whisper White, Marina Mist, Early Espresso
Accessories: Timeless Type Junior Alphabet Sizzlets; 1 1/4 circle punch; White organza ribbon

Saturday, April 24, 2010

One Layer Card Challenge


Kristina Werner has a challenge out right now that's right up my alley - one layer cards. Just ink and paper; no layers or embellishments. Fun! I love how simple yet intriguing one-layer cards can be.


~Supplies~
Stamps: house and sentiment (Studio G); Heart Prints (Papertrey Ink)
Ink: Fresh Snow (PTI); Rose Red (Stampin' Up!)
Paper: Kraft (SU)
Accessories: None!

A Flower for You


Here's another 4.25 x 4.25 card using the new colors and the ruffle flower technique. The flower is made from all five of the new colors. I'm normally not much of a sponger, but this card was screaming for it. :)


~Supplies~ (All by Stampin' Up! except where noted)
Stamps: Teeny Tiny Wishes
Ink: Chocolate Chip
Paper: Whisper White, Cajun Craze, Marina Mist, Daffodil Delight, Cherry Cobbler, and Early Espresso
Accessories: Floral Fusion sizzlet, Scallop Trim punch, 1 3/4 circle punch, linen thread, button (Basic Grey), paper piercer

Welcome back, Wild Wasabi!


Wild Wasabi is back, baby! :)

Also used the new colors (yes, AGAIN). I couldn't decide where to put the sentiment, so I went without.


~Supplies~ (All by Stampin' Up!)
Stamps: N/A
Ink: N/A
Paper: Kraft, Cherry Cobbler, Cajun Craze, Daffodil Delight, Marina Mist, Early Espresso, Wild Wasabi, and Wild Wasabi print
Accessories: 1 3/4, 1 3/8, and 1 1/4 circle punches, Button Latte, linen thread

Thursday, April 22, 2010

Going Unmounted!

Yep, that's right, folks! I am unmounting all my wood-mount stamps! I decided that it just took up too much room, and I could never find what I needed (and sometimes didn't even know what I had!) With SU offering unmounted now, I knew that I wanted to convert all my old stamps. You would not believe how much space I'm saving, and how organized they all are now!
Here's the "before" pile of clam shell boxes and wood blocks (I didn't really store them in the corner on the floor like this....it's just where I've dumped the blocks and cases after I took the rubber off):


And here's how they look now! I am not done yet, but this is what I've done so far. I can fit 2 to 3 sets per case! Next I need to make nice labels for them.


Here's how I did it....First of all, I stamped the image (still on the wood block) using Staz-On black ink onto the cling side of EZ Mount foam. Then I cut around the image, not too close. Here's a picture of what I ended up with.

Next, I peeled the red rubber off the wood and foam mount. It's kind of scary to do at first, but it actually comes off really easily! You have to be somewhat careful, but it's pretty hard to actually hurt your stamps doing this. :) Here's a picture of what you have left - just naked red rubber!

Here's a picture from the side...pretty thin!


Next step, I peeled the protective backing off the sticky side of the EZ Mount. This side is SUPER sticky!!! Then, I carefully stuck the red rubber onto the sticky side of the EZ Mount. This is the trickiest part, because you want to line up your rubber with the Staz-On image on the other side. I kind of had to eye ball it. I placed it where I thought it should go, then used some unique points on the image, looking back and forth from image to rubber, making sure all the edges matched. Then I stuck it on.


Next I just cut the extra foam away.


The EZ Mount is super sticky, so it is MUCH EASIER if you use a hot knife instead of scissors.



Here's a picture of the hot knife in action.


And here's the final result!!!!





Don't be fooled...this is actually a long process, especially when multiplied by the large number of stamps that need to be done! I'm still not quite completely finished! But, I already love it and am so excited to be unmounted. I really love that stamping the image in Staz-On on the cling side gives me an image to see through the clear block, so I know what I'm stamping and where. That is key, in my opinion!

More of the new colors


Here's another little 4.25 x 4.25 card that shows off the new Stampin' Up! colors. That beautiful, rich red is definitely my favorite, with the brown a close second!



~Supplies~ (All by Stampin' Up!)
Stamps: Teeny Tiny Wishes
Ink: Chocolate Chip
Paper: Whisper White, Early Espresso, Marina Mist, Daffodil Delight, and Cherry Cobbler
Accessories: Beautiful Wings Embosslit, Small Oval Punch, Scallop Trim Border punch, white organza ribbon, dimensionals

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

New Stampin' Up! colors!


I got my new color samples from Stampin' Up! today and wanted to do some quick cards to play with them. After all, quick cards are all I can manage these days! :)





I've been seeing some great cards with white layered on white recently, which inspired me on these butterfly cards.



~Supplies~
Stamps: Vintage Picnic Sentiments (Papertrey Ink)
Ink: Dark Chocolate (PTI)
Paper: Stamper's Select White (PTI); Cherry Cobbler, Cajun Craze, Daffodil Delight, Marina Mist, and Early Espresso (Stampin' Up!)
Accessories: Beautiful Wings Embosslit, Floral Fusion Sizzlet, and Swiss Dot embossing folder; dimensionals, rhinestones (Michael's $1 section)

Tuesday, April 13, 2010

I'm Baaa-aaack!

Lookie what I made:


Now you know where I've been the last 2.5 months! :) Our family of 3 is now a family of 4!

I have barely touched my stamps since she was born, so I've really started to get the crafting itch recently! I HAVE been working on finishing a "little" unmounting project that I started in the days before giving birth (nesting, perhaps?) I'll share more details about that soon. Needless to say, I'm about halfway done and LOVING the space I'm saving, plus the organization!