Just in CASE you want some Shabby Chic'

Hi everyone.
I wanted to post a few of the 'shabby chic' cards using NEW techniques I have never tried. So during my blog surfing I found two. One is called faux silk paper, and the other is making shabby chic flowers by spraying them with water.
I did both cards about a week or so ago, but I had wait as I just haven't had time to write down all the "stuff" I used until now. I also must say I had completely ran out of shabby chic MOJO when I did these, so I CASED both of the cards I will be posting. Sometimes we just need some help when those creative juices aren't flowing so well. What I can tell you is this... I love to follow both of the blogs that I will credit today for the art work, and I think you will too.
The first card is inspired by Ann Schach who is one of my very FAVORITE blogs to follow. Not only is she talented in everything she does, she has great tutorials and also takes the time to respond to every single comment. How nice is that! She has been such a motivator for me.
So with that said the first new technique I learned from Ann is called "Faux Silk". I got so wrapped up in following the directions I ended up just totally casing her entire card, and what a great project it turned out to be!

I will definitely be using this faux silk technique again and again.

Full directions for making this Faux Silk paper and card can be found on Ann Schach's blog here.

Supplies used: Stamps - Perfect Punches, Heard from the Heart. Cardstock: Early Expresso, Poppy Parade, Whisper White, More Mustard. Ribbon: Satin Expresso. Stash Lace. Tools: Oval XL punch, Ovals BS die, 1/2" circle punch, & Daubers for distressing.


The second card was inspired by Karin Gilbert, whom I found through the Stampin' Connection, and another great source of inspiration and talent. Again I will not bother with all the details for this second shabby chic card as you can find them here if you are interested. I LOVE the touch of yellow on this one.

Supplies: Stamp set: Elements of Style, Short and Sweet, Curvy Verses. Cardstock: Kraft, Cherry Cobbler, Early Expresso, Very Vanilla, Daffodil Delight, Pear Pizzazz. Ink: Early Expresso, Cherry Cobbler, Versamark. Emboss Powder: Clear. DSP: Newsprint. Blossom Party Die, Modern Label punch & Word Window punch, brads.   

Both of the cards have my own personal touches and minor changes, but the art credit truly goes to  Ann and Karen on these beautiful creations. So Ann and Karen... just in CASE I haven't said it enough,  THANKS for sharing your talent and giving us such great inspiration when our MOJO is low.  

Hootie says THANKS for stopping by and please leave a comment!

Morning Cup!

Today I'm posting a card using the new MORNING CUP stamp set which I just love and  I'll be using it a lot!
But honestly.... I just linked my Blog with my On-line Stampin' Up website ALL BY MYSELF !  Hard to believe, I know.
(Pssssst...  you can get to my SU website on the side link called My Store).
 I'm really posting this card to see if I hooked it up right, since all my friends know I am NOT a PC technical geek, and usually need help doing EVERYTHING computer related. Go figure.  Just ask my Upline Nance at Canopy Crafts. 

OK, enough of that. This card uses the stamping set Morning Cup which includes 11 cute stamps related to coffee, tea, cups, etc., it's so cute. I have to admit I saw this layout on someone's blog and for the life of me I can't remember who's blog it was on. I tried looking, but no luck. Hmmmm maybe I need a cup of coffee. ???
  I used some new Poppy Parade CS to mat the coffee pot stamped on W.W., and Early Express CS for matting my DSP scraps for cupboards. I also stamped the single cup several times on DSP and cut out to hang from the scallop trim edge strip at the bottom of the cupboard. I used one loop each to create the cupboard handles...clever? (that IS MY idea).

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            







The sentiment is stamped on W.W. then punched with the Modern Label XL, and again punched from the Modern Label XL from Early Expresso, cut in half and used to form a second mat.  The sentiment fits me to a tee (no pun intended) because without my coffee I AM sleeping. Can YOU relate?
. I finished off the inside with a second sentiment and the stack of cups, both from the same set.

Hootie says THANKS for stopping by and please leave a comment.

Now I have to see if that link is working!  Later.....

Punch Art Fun!

Hi there!

Well today I'm going to post a few cards using the punch art technique.

I was asked by  3 friends to make 3 wedding cards, 2 birthday cards in the past few days. (guess August is a big wedding month).

 Two of the requests for wedding cards wanted FUN outdoorsy cards and one more traditional. Since they were for 3 different people I repeated one design twice with a few differences. See if can you spot them? 

These are self explanatory regarding the assembly, so I will focus on the tools used to create these fun punch art cards.

The first card is the more traditional wedding card with HEARTS to represent the Bride & Groom.

This card used the "Occasional Quotes" level 3 hostess set, Heart Embosslit die, Heart punch, 1/2" circle punch, 1/8" hole punch, Gray & Very Vanilla & Black CS, Very Vanilla ribbon, Lap of Luxury & Bridesmaid DSP, and Basic Pearls.

The Bridesmaid "swirl" design CS  creates the Bride Heart. I ran it through the CB with the polka dot embossing folder, then rounded the top with a 1/2" circle punch and lined the neck with basic pearls.  I punched a heart from the Bridesmaid 'stripe' CS to make the Groom's shirt, which is tucked behind the Black CS heart for the tux. The black heart was also embossed with CB polka dot folder and I cut a V out of the front area so the shirt would show. The neck was rounded with the 1/2" circle punch. The buttons are punched with a 1/8" hole punch, and the bow tie is a basic knot from a ribbon scrap.

The inside sentiment is also from the "Occasional Quotes" level 3 hostess set.

I like this one a lot.

The next two both used the new two step Owl Punch, two step Bird punch, CB embossing  folder, Lap of Luxury DSP,  Pink & W.W. CS, and from my stash: Pink ribbon, bright pink rhinestone, white brad & a scrap of white wire ribbon to make her veil.  

this card used the scallop oval punch XL to mat the sentiment (retired).

this card used the 1 3/4" scallop circle to mat sentiment from the "Occasional Quotes" level 3 hostess set. Did you notice? I didn't forget to add the little hearts floating between the bride & groom on this card. I think these little owls make just the cutest couple.

The last punch art card is for a birthday and she wanted ladybugs. So here is what made using these punches: Designer Label large,  1 3/4" scallop circle, 1 3/8", 1 1/4", 1/2" and 1/4" circle punches, DSP (retired), and my friend can write in the age for the sentiment from the "On Your Birthday" stamp set.

Sorry for blurrry photo here. Bad lighting and Too much coffee?

The verse is a ladybug poem with a few stamped and cut small ladybugs to anchor it.

Next is a close up of the punch art lady bug... Too cute!

 I hope you like these punch art cards.... now Give it Try!

Hootie says "Thanks for stopping by and Please leave a comment.

FIRST DAY of SCHOOL

Today I'm posting the cutest little "First Day of School" books using the New stamping set of the same name.  I found the directions for it while blog hopping at Mike Funke's blog, so I won't bother to write out all the directional details as you can get them by clinking on the link if you're interested.
  I made the book jackets with two colors of CS; one Poppy Parade and one Pumpkin Pie, which will settle any arguements between two of my school aged grandchildren. Aren't they adorable. So much cuter in person too, but you knew that.

This is what they look like finished. I tied them closed using some stash ribbon I had, one with crayons and the other with numbers and math symbols. I used some bronze embossing powder (doesn't show up to good here) to heat emboss the cute little "Inch-worm Book-worm". See his cute little glasses?

Then under that I stamped the "First Day of School" sentiment. On the binding I used the entire alphabet  A-Z stamp from the set. Very tiny but perfect for this project.

and on the back the row of Apples! So cute.

NOW for the surprise! When you open the book you'll see it's the Matchbox die attached to the back

inside cover. I stamped the "This book belongs to" stamp on W.W. and attached to the match box cover and filled it out. Then on the front inside cover I used two more of the stamps from the set; "Grade" and "A+".  This would make a perfect teacher treat.

As most of you know, the matchbox will hold 4 Hershey Nuggets.... But...are you ready????? 

 I wrapped the nuggets in Avery address labels that I stamped with a frame stamp and also used individual alphabet & number stamps to make A B C & 1 2 3. These are suppose to look like little school books. The Avery labels fit perfectly and you can decorate depending on the theme of the matchbox.

 I think they are cute, cute, cute!

Hope you like them too.

Hootie says "Thanks for stopping by and please leave a message".

PPA55 Awash with Flowers & Apple Blossoms

This post is for my entry to  the Pals Paper Arts  (PPA55) color challenge for this week. The colors are Melon Mambo, Delightful Daffodil, & Tempting Tourquoise. Don't these colors look HAPPY?

I thought this would be a snap to do with such cheery colors but I really struggled deciding what color card base to use. Nothing seemed 'right' when I assembled them, because I have limited supplies in these colors except for the CS, so I opted for Whisper White as the base. Can't go wrong with white, right? Then I added the colors with INK to the design elements on the front. In the first card I used the Awash with Flowers set (love that set) with a sentiment from Apple Blossoms hostess set. Two of my favorite sets.

The three colors are in the flowers with a turquoise mat to make it pop a little. I also added some bling with a few Basic Pearls on the small blue flower used to set off the sentiment,

and again in the butterfly body. I have a bunch of these butterflies in my stash that I stamped and punched a few years ago using my friends tools, so I'm not sure if it's a retired SU stamp & punch or not. But I love it.

Simple but nice I think... how about you? What do you think?

I made another card using the same idea with a Whisper White background but this time I embossed the front corner with the Elegant Bouquet embossing folder. I stamped the design on W.W. using the Apple Blossoms hostess set in Melon Mambo and Delightful Daffodil;

and added a few small flowers from the Awash set and colored with a turquoise marker.  

 I double matted this on Delightful Daffodil and Melon Mambo CS; both edged with the Scallop Trim Border punch. Again a touch of Basic Pearl halfs in two sizes on the flowers, and finished with a simple bow using the polka dot ribbon (retired) attached with a glue dot.

Well that's my entry for the PPA55 color challenge.

Hootie says "Thanks for stopping by, and Please leave a comment and let me know what you think.  

Square Lattice KISS

This post is going to feature two KISS (Keep It Simple Sweetie) cards. In other words... FAST!!
For both cards I featured the Square Lattice embossing folder.

A few weeks ago my sister-in-law, Kim and her mother, Adrian, stopped by to use a gift certificate in my store. As they looked in the catalog they asked me how the Awash with Flowers set worked. I just happed to have that set, so I grabbed a scrap piece of Whisper White CS and just stamped a few images on the piece. No stampa-ma-jig, nothing; just eye-balled it. I grabbed another stamp from Word Play (Great set) and added a sentiment. They seemed to LOVE it. After they left, I trimmed down the scrap and thought it didn't look half bad, so I matted it on another scrap of Pear Pizzazz CS and tied some organza ribbon from my stash.

Well now....  may as well keep going, right?  So I grabbed some Daffodil Delight CS, scored, folded and used the Square Lattice embossing folder and layered my front to the front! Finished off the inside with another scrap piece of W.W. added a small flower from the Awash set and also two sentiments from Messages for Mom from the Occassion Mini. Done! Turned out pretty cute.

Done!

The second card was even faster than the first...

Card base is Very Vanilla CS, scored, folded. Stamped all over with a flower from Friends Never Fade in Early Expresso.  Then I  used the Square Lattice embossing folder on my card front! Just love that lattice look!

I tied a piece of Peach Parfait ribbon around the front of the card with a simple knot. I stamped another image from the same Friends set in Early Expresso and colored in the flower with the Peach Parfait write marker. I matted that to a piece of Early Expresso CS and popped it up with dimensionals. 

The inside is a piece of Whisper White CS matted to Early Expresso CS. Stamped the flower in Early Expresso on the edge of the lower corner and colored lightly with the Peach Parfait write marker. The two inside sentiments are from Occasional Quotes a Level III hostess set.

  Done!

 Now go KISS something!

Card #1 Supplies:STAMPS: Awash with Flowers, Word Play, Messages for Mom, CS: Daffodil Delight, Pear Pizzaz, Whisper White. INK: Daffodil Delight, Pear Pizzazz, Rich Razzleberry, Poppy Parade, Early Expresso. Square Lattice embossing folder, stash ribbon.

Card #2 Supplies: STAMPS: Friends Never Fade, Occasional Quotes level III, CS: Very Vanilla, Early Expresso. INK: Early Expresso. Write Marker & Ribbon - Peach Parfait, Square Lattice embossing folder. 

Hootie says "Thanks for stopping by and please a comment".

HOOTIE TOOTIE

Well all of you that stop by from time to time know that I love owls and HOOTIE is my blog mascot, so when I saw this card I said to myself, "Self... this is just too stinkin' cute not to post", but I can take NO credit. I totally CASED from Jan Tink and when I saw it I just couldn't stop myself. I ran to the basement unwrapped my two step owl punch and made one immediately. I was smiling the whole time and think you will too!

Come on..... You're smiling right?

Hootie says....Thanks for stopping by and please leave a comment.

I'm Back Up and Running!

Hi everyone! Whew.... I've been gone a long time, but not because I wanted to be. My PC needed a new modem after "weeks" I finally got one. Of course it couldn't be just easy...but I got one. In the mean time I was making cards like crazy anticipating posting a few. But since it's late and I don't have all the details written out, I'm going to just post a few cards with very little detail.

The first one I made for a PPA 'wedding' challenge, but couldn't get posted due to PC problems.

The CS is Bridemaid embossed on the corner with Elegant Bouquet, matting in Choc Chip and Very Vanilla, choc chip ribbon topped with a touch of pink, and more pink in the watercolor, bow & pearls.

The next two cards were to try out two new embossing folders; Elegant Lines with Concord Crush CS and Vintage Wallpaper with Perfect Plum CS. LOVE both embossing folders!

The color is not good here, but if you have Concord Crush you know it's so purpley rich!

I also placed a few pearls right in the swirls.. very simple.

The sentiment is stamped in Concord Crush ink on Vellum CS.

The Perfect Plum CS is embossed with Vintage Wallpaper and  is paired with the stamp set "Charming" matted on some new Sunny Garden DSP. Love it.

The sentiment inside is from the Level I Hostess set Afterthoughts.

Lastly I made a few cards using the Motorcycle Stamp from the Summer mini. One for a guy and one for a gal. So FUN!

I backed the motorcycles with some new Newsprint DSP and added a few Stickles to the spokes for some bling.

Well I guess I better stop.. because I could go on Alllllll night!

So happy to be back... see you soon.

Hootie says, Please leave a comment, because you know we all just LOVE that.