January 28 - Beautiful Thing Card

...and back to our regularly scheduled programming!
My friend Jenn has gotten me COMPLETELY hooked on making cards lately. I just love the fact that I can sit down to create without having to pick out photos, etc. and if I don't love it then I just won't use it! And let me tell you - before today's project came into my brain I made one UGLY card. Ha ha! Obviously I'm NOT going to post it here, you'll all laugh at me. :)
But I do love how today's project came out so it made up for the ugly beginning of my time in the scrap room. We all need to get warmed up sometimes, right?
And can I just say that I love snow days sometimes? It gives me the perfect time to go create without feeling guilty about not getting other stuff done. (Yes, I did the dishes first).
And one last thing - I'm so happy that I've had so much interest in the Card Club Night (last post), we're going to have SO much fun making cards!!! There is still room if anyone else would like to sign up.

Beautiful Thing Card

Ingredients:

• Whisper White & Kraft Cardstock (Stampin' Up!)
  
• "A Beautiful Thing" Stamp Set (Stampin' Up!)
• Pretty In Pink, Certainly Celery, Close to Cocoa and Baja Breeze ink (Stampin' Up!)
• Stampin' Dimensionals (Stampin' Up!)
• Close to Cocoa Stampin' Write Marker (Stampin' Up!)
• Small blue rhinestones (KaiserCraft)

Instructions:

1. Using your solid flower stamp from the set stamp random images around the front of the card before it is folded. Stamp some in "Pretty in Pink" and some in "Certainly Celery" ink.
2. Using the detail stamp of the same size stamp over the solid flowers using "Close to Cocoa" ink.
3. Using the 4-flower small stamp ink the FIRST flower with Baja Breeze ink and stamp it on white cardstock. Do this for as many pink flowers as you have stamped on your card that you can see the center dot on. Cut these small blue flowers out in a small circle. Add a small rhinestone in the center of each.
4. Cut a Stampin' Dimensional in 4 even pieces and add them to the back of these small flowers. Adhere them to the center of your pink flowers.
5. Stamp your sentiment stamp on kraft cardstock with "Close to Cocoa" ink. Cut it out and draw a small line border around the rectangle with your Close to Cocoa Stampin' Write marker. Add two dimensionals and adhere it to the front of your card.

Have a great snowy Wednesday (if it is snowy where you are!) If not, I'm totally jealous! :)

Card Club Night!

If you love cards then this is the night for you! Once each month I will be having a card club night where you can come and make 6 cards for $8 and a $25 Stampin' Up! order. There is no monthly commitment, you can come every month or every other month or whenever you would like. I just need you to RSVP for your spot no later than a week before we meet so I will have enough supplies. SPECIAL - anyone who attends the card night in February will get a new Spring/Summer Catalog & Idea Book that night for FREE.

The 4 cards shown above are 4 of the cards we will be making in February.

And ready for the best part? Everyone who attends each month that has 5 or more attendees will get a hostess goodie package with a variety of stamp(s) from the earned hostess set and embellishments from the catalog. I will take the hostess benefits for each night and split them up among the attendees so that everyone will share the benefits! And we'll have more goodies in February and March due to Sale-A-Bration ( although if you place a $50 or more order on card night during Sale-a-Bration you will get your complete earned SAB choice - it will not be included in the goodie bags )

Our first card club night will be Tuesday, Feb. 10th and every second Tuesday of the month every month after that from 6pm to 8pm at my house. There will be refreshments as well. To RSVP or if you have any questions you can email me at holly.vandyne@gmail.com.
Can't make it a night and still want to participate please just contact me to let me know and I'll pre-stamp your cards for you. RSVP must be made by Feb 3rd.

January 18 - Clear Embossed Card

**EDITED TO ADD**
I apologize for having to remove this day's project - it has been chosen to appear in the July 2009 issue of CARDS magazine. I will add it back as soon as the issue is out in stores. Thank you!

I had SO much fun making today's card. Those WONDERFUL ladies from The Scrapbooking Cafe were so sweet and gave me a Sizzix Big Shot for Christmas that I have not had my hand off of since I got it. I can't even begin to tell you how much I love this thing and everything you can do with it. Then on Friday I got my new Spring/Summer Catalog and Idea Book from Stampin' Up! and am SO excited about all of the new Sizzix dies, embossing plates, etc. they now have - I am in SO much trouble. Hope you're all enjoying your weekend!

January 14 - ENJOY Treat Box

I LOVE these clear treat boxes from Pageframe Designs! There are 3 in each package and they come unassembled but they are super-fun to put together. I was going to do 3 for The Scrapbooking Cafe's Project Weekly feature this week but I managed to punch an accidental hole in the side of one of them while I was putting it together with the eyelets, so I didn't use the one I messed up for the feature. But then I thought - I can't waste this box! LOL So I just played around with it and came up with this. I covered up my mistake hole with the big flower and pearl so no one knows it is even there (unless you look inside the box I guess!) :) If you don't get the Project Weekly email and want to see how the others turned out you can see them posted in the Pageframe Designs gallery on their website (linked above).

"ENJOY" Treat Box

Ingredients:

• Clear Box: Pageframe Designs
• White Eyelets
• Crop-A-Dile
• "Enjoy Stamp" Lovely Labels Stamp Set, SU!
• Mini Flower Stamp: Priceless Set, SU!
  
• Ink: Stampin' Up! (Chocolate Chip, Kiwi Kiss)
  
• Cardstock: Stampin' Up! (Kraft, Whisper White)
• Patterned Paper: SU!
  
• Scalloped Punch: SU!
• Stampin' Dimensionals: SU!
  
• Green Rhinestones: KaiserCraft
• Flower and Pearls: Pretties Kit (SU!)
• Peanuts

Instructions:

1. Peel off the protective coating from the box lid and the box (both sides). Fold the creases inside and punch your hole for your eyelet where the tabs meet up on the lid on each side. Insert your eyelet and crimp together with your Crop-A-Dile on each of the 4 tabs to hold the box lid together.
2. Stamp your ENJOY image in Chocolate Chip ink on kraft cardstock and cut it out. Stamp the same image with Kiwi Kiss ink on Whisper White cardstock and cut out only the ENJOY sentiment. Adhere it on top of your craft image. Add Stampin' Dimensionals to the back. Add two small rhinestones on the stamped swirls.
   
3. Punch a scalloped circle shape out of matching patterned paper and adhere your ENJOY square to the top of that. Add more dimensionals on the back of the scalloped circle and adhere it to the top of your box lid.
4. Fold in your creases for your box and crimp an eyelet in the center of the tab to hold the box together.
5. Take a large flower from your Pretties Kit and stamp your small flower image from your Priceless set in Kiwi Kiss ink all over the flower. Add a small green rhinestone in the center of one of the stamped flowers on each of the big petals. With a large glue dot adhere it to the front of your box. Adhere a large flat backed pearl from the same kit in the center.
6. Add your treat to the inside of your box and you're finished! :)
   

January 11 - Sweet Little Feet Page

This past week was wonderful! Why? Because I became an aunt again to a beautiful sweet baby girl. It was not hard to get some amazing pictures of her since she was so beautiful (yes, I'm biased - but she really is!). I did this page this weekend of her sweet little foot. It's a simple page but I really didn't want to take away from the photo so I didn't put a whole lot on it.

Sweet Little Feet Page

Ingredients:

• Background patterned paper (Making Memories)
• Teal Patterned paper (Basic Grey)
• Kraft Cardstock (SU!)
• White Signo Pen (SU!)
• Scalloped Edge Punch (SU!)
• Mini Letter Stickers (Making Memories)
• Bookplates (SU!)
• Sticker Lace (Creative Imaginations)
• Pearls (Kaisercraft)

Instructions:

1. Adhere your 5x7 photo to your teal patterned paper in the top left corner leaving about a half inch on the left side and top. Trim the right side and bottom of the paper leaving about 2-1/2" on the bottom and the right side. Scallop punch the right side and the bottom, then adhere this to your kraft cardstock. Trim this to have 1/2" on the left and top, 2-1/2" on the right side and about 1" on the bottom.
2. Add your sticker lace on the right side of your photo half overlapping the photo and the other half on the patterned paper. Add your pearls down the side over the sticker lace.
3. With your white Signo pen add a dot on each scallop. You can also write your photo caption on the bottom inch of the craft under your photo.
4. Adhere this kraft with photo along the left side vine border of the patterned paper.
5. On the right side add your title with the small letter stickers then add your bookplates over each word.
   

January 10 - Clear Valentine Card

It is honestly downright embarrassing how long it has been since I've posted a project on this blog and I do apologize. I'm all about getting caught up and back on track this new year. :)
I've had some health issues that have made it very frustrating to work with my hands, which is partly to blame for my absence in December. I'm learning to adjust and deal with it. I've done a ton of projects today since we're snowed in so I have a lot of things to post during the coming weeks.

I absolutely LOVE Valentines Day and clear cards so I decided to do both with today's project. The girls at the Scrapbooking Cafe were sweet enough to get me a Sizzix Big Shot for Christmas so I've been using the heck out of the Stampin' Up! Top Notes die.

Clear Valentine Card

Ingredients:

• Clear Card (Pageframe Designs)
• Priceless Stamp Set - Heart (SU!)
• Short & Sweet Stamp Set - Love You (SU!)
  
• Big fabric flower (Stampin' Up!, Pretties Kit)
• Silver Bookplate (Stampin' Up!, Hodgepodge Hardware)
• Whisper White and Riding Hood Red and Pink Pirouette Cardstock (SU!)
• Riding Hood Red and Versamark ink (SU!)
• White Signo Pen (SU!)
• Sizzix Top Notes Die (SU!)
• Silver Embossing Powder (SU!)
• Stampin' Dimensionals (SU!)
  

Instructions:

1. Peel your protective coating off of your clear card
2. Cut the same shape on your Sizzix with your Whisper White and Riding Hood Red cardstock. Trim your white shape around the perferations on the edges to make it slightly smaller than your red shape. Adhere them together, white on top. Adhere this shape to the inside of your clear card.
3. Stamp your heart with Versamark ink on the Pink Pirouette cardstock. Sprinkle your silver embossing powder on it and heat emboss the image. Cut the heart out and put some Stampin' Dimensionals on the back. Adhere it to the front of the flower. Adhere the entire flower with heart on the front of your card covering most of your shape inside. This is where you can write or sign your card inside without having it show through because the flower will cover it.
4. Stamp your "Love You" image in Riding Hood Red at an angle at the bottom of the white shape inside of the card.
5. Line up your bookplate on the front with the card closed so that it will line up with the greeting inside of it and poke holes in the side of the bookplate where the holes are with sharp scissors. Insert your brads and cut off the ends of them before you spread out the prongs. This way they won't show through the front of the clear card.
6. Dot around the 3 open sides of the front of your card with your white Signo pen.