Stamping 411 Saturday Sketch Challenge #SSC124

Howdy stampers! It's that time again - Stamping 411's Saturday Sketch Challenge! Just look at this fabulous sketch - it's super easy to work with - won't you play along with us this week? We love to see your creations! You know, if you didn't play along last week you missed out on some Blog Candy! Yep, you missed it! But you never know when we'll do random Blog Candy again, so go get busy and start stamping! :)

Now is the time for me to admit that I've been hoarding this gorgeous velvet flocked paper from the Christmas Cocoa Designer Series Pack. So to get over my momentary hoarding disease I cut a big piece of it to layer on the WHOLE card front of this project! Aren't you proud of me? Baby steps, right?!
The card starts with a folded base of Whisper White cardstock in the standard card size of 4 1/4" x 5 1/2". The designer paper layer is cut at 4" x 5 1/4". If you look really close, you can see some sparkle on the velvet flocking. I took my Versamark ink pad and rubbed it over the flocking areas and then heat embossed it with Iridescent Ice embossing powder. It's so sparkly in real life!

Next, I took a piece of Whisper White cardstock and ran it through the Big Shot with one of the SU! texture folders whose name escapes me now, and then I cut two strips for that layer on the sketch. They are mounted with Stampin' Dimensionals to the card front.
The next layer is another piece of Christmas Cocoa DSP (be still my heart!) that I used to mat the main image which is also stamped on Whisper White cardstock.

As you can see, I used Dasher - isn't he a great stamp?! And this time, I stamped him in Chocolate Chip Craft ink and heat embossed him with more Iridescent Ice embossing powder. Once I mounted him on the dsp, I added a Rhinestone Fire Square Brad for accent and the whole piece was mounted on the card front with Stampin' Dimensionals.

The final touch for the front was the greeting which I stamped from Teeny Tiny Wishes onto more Whisper White and shaped into a banner and mounted it with dimensional pieces. I love this look for the greeting!

The inside was stamped as well using Real Red ink and the greeting from Snow Swirled. For the little design, I inked up Dasher's antlers and just added it to the lower left corner. Easy-peasy!

That's it for this week! Now that you've checked out the details of my project, be sure to check out the other operators cards too! They are some rockin' stampers and I'm sure they have a card that will inspire you!
Then get out your stamps and get stampin'! Don't forget to upload your creation to the Stamping 411 blog before Thursday morning - you might just get picked for the showcase!
Have a great weekend - I'll see you on Monday!
~~Robin

Blogger's Challenge #124 - Technique Project

I can't even begin to tell you how much I love how this card turned out! This week, we were supposed to choose a stamping technique and do our project around it. Well, I'm not normally much of a frou-frou technique stamper. I'm more of a "Git 'er done" type stamper. BUT, one of my all time favorite techniques is Cracked Glass and I knew that it would work beautifully with the silverware image from the "Compliments to the Chef" stamp set.

That stamp set is one of my favorites from the SU! catalog, but I really didn't have a good reason to buy it other than I just liked it so much. It's not one that I'd normally use for a class so the budget restraints dictated that it not be added to the collection ahead of stuff I need all the time like cardstock and SNAIL! LOL! Can you relate?
Well, I said as much in passing to my bff Tiffany when we were at convention and wouldn't you know it, she went and bought it for me as part of a congrats gift for being named to Advisory Board! Now, don't you think that made my day - made me cry too, but that's beside the point!
(Tiffany, you ROCK! But you already knew that!)

Anyway, for this card, I first heat embossed the silverware stamp with Silver Encore ink and Silver Embossing Powder. I wanted to make sure the image didn't get diluted too much with the layers of embossing that would be on top of it.
Next, I inked up the entire piece of cardstock with Versamark ink and covered it with Glassy Glaze Embossing Powder. It's a very chunky, thick embossing powder that leaves a thicker coating over the image. After heat embossing that layer, I let it cool a minute and then added more Versamark ink and more Glassy Glaze powder. I then heat embossed it again. These steps were repeated a total of 4 times and then I put the piece in the freezer for about 15 minutes. I then took it out and immediately bent the piece several times in different directions, causing the glaze to crack like broken glass. You have to do this quickly or it gets too warm to crack.

Next, I sponged Soft Suede and Rich Razzleberry ink on top of the piece working the ink into the cracks. The excess was then rubbed off with a piece of paper towel.

The background was also kind of techniquey. I inked up my Bella Toile background stamp with Creamy Caramel ink and stamped off one time. Then I used a sponge dauber to add some Rich Razzleberry ink to the stamp. Next, I laid my piece of Very Vanilla cardstock on the stamp and transferred the multi-colored image by rubbing over the cardstock with my hand. I usually lay a piece of Grid Paper over it too so my fingers don't get inky.

So, lots of sponging with Soft Suede, lots of distressing with my Bone Folder, some Orchard Ribbon Originals later and you have the almost finished project.
Here is a close up of the Cracked Glass layer and the greeting that I handcut out of another piece of Very Vanilla after stamping the background image again with the residual ink. I added the greeting from Teeny Tiny Wishes with Soft Suede ink on top of it and sponged the edges. It's popped up on a Stampin' Dimensional to make it stand out a bit.

After all that work on the outside, I couldn't leave the inside blank now could I? So, I took another piece of Very Vanilla cardstock and placed a post it note on it. Then I again used the residual ink on the background stamp and created this insert with a blank place to write a message. It was sponged as well.

I'm so glad you've stopped by to see me today! I'd love to hear your thoughts about this card, so leave me a comment if you have a second or two!
Be sure to check out all the other Blogger's Challenge players and their cool technique cards by clicking on the link in my sidebar - I'm sure they will inspire you. And don't forget to come back tomorrow to see my Stamping 411 card - it's a doozy!
Have a happy Friday everyone!
~~Robin

All Supplies SU!

Sympathy in Green

Good morning Stampers! It's Thursday morning and I'm just popping in here with a quick post today. I am covering a stamp camp next Monday night in Lake Ridge for my upline and this is one of the cards we'll be making. I always hate waiting until I need one to make a sympathy card, so it's nice to have some made up ahead of time, because unfortunately, we always do end up needing them.

I got the general idea for this card from a swap that I received at convention, but since they didn't put their name on the back, I can't credit them. If it's you, please tell me, ok?
It's pretty simple to put together, basic stamping and some sponging. I used the Mat Pack and Paper Piercer for the pierced corners and to line up the brads.

The inside is pretty simple too, more basic stamping and some sponging. I love the colors of this card used together, very soft and warm. It could be a good masculine card as well with a different greeting - very easy to change out.

Have a great Thursday and come back tomorrow for a really cool Blogger's Challenge Card!
~~Robin

Supply List: (all SU!)
Stamps - Kind and Caring Thoughts, God's Blessings, Teeny Tiny Wishes
Inks - Handsome Hunter, Mellow Moss
Cardstock - Naturals Ivory, Handsome Hunter, Mellow Moss
Accessories - Paper Piercer, Mat Pack, Stamping Sponge, Gold Brads, Stampin' Dimensionals

Pretty Paper Poinsettias are a Pain in the Patootie!

But, they sure are beautiful when you make 'em!
I officially LOVE this card! But, I wouldn't want to make 20 of them - LOL! Read to the end to see why....

Welcome to Wednesday - I hope you are having a great week in stampingland. I've been spending lots of time in the studio getting ready for my craft show on Saturday morning. Hey, if you are in the area, come out and see me at the Manassas Volunteer Fire Department in Old Town Manassas. It goes from 8 am - 1 pm and it's a mix of crafters and vendors. I've been making cards, note card packages, gift tags and ornaments to sell and I'll have a few other special things with me as well. You just have to come see!

Now, on to the card story....
At WOW Christmas Card class Friday, Carol made the comment that the Petals A Plenty textured background would look great if we had a poinsettia stamp to coordinate with it. Well....SU! does have a gorgeous poinsettia stamp in the Christ is Born stamp set, which I just happen to own! (I know, insert surprised face here!) I've rarely used it though, yep, another surprised face, and on Monday I decided to get my creative mojo going by coming up with a card using those two elements.
And I really, really LOVE it!

To create this beauty, I ran a piece of Very Vanilla cardstock through the Big Shot with the Petals A Plenty texture folder. Then I sponged on some Champagne Mist Shimmer paint to make it glow. This layer was mounted on a piece of Bravo Burgundy which was adhered to a folded Soft Suede card base.
The greeting was inked first with Gold Encore ink for the top portion, then I used a Bravo Burgundy Stampin' Write Marker for the bottom verse. I used my Heat Tool and Gold Embossing Powder to finish this part of the card. It was then mounted on a piece of Bravo Burgundy cardstock and popped up on Stampin' Dimensionals above the texture background.

I then took the poinsettia stamp and inked it first with Pretty in Pink ink then used a Sponge Dauber to add a bit of Bravo Burgundy ink to the edges. I love the look of variegated poinsettias, especially the pink and white ones. We decorated the church with them when we were married almost 18 years ago. It was beautiful, but I digress....
The center of the stamp was inked with Gold Encore ink and then I used my Heat Tool to emboss it. What's really cool is that when I heated the flower, I didn't realize that some of the Gold Embossing Powder I'd used had stuck to the pink flower area. But serendipity happened and it turned out so cool! Look, can you see it in this picture?

Nah, probably not, but trust me, it is way cool in real life!
So, I made two of the flowers and used my Bone Folder to curl the petals AFTER I cut them out with my Paper Snips (this is why I would not want to make 20 of them! I hate to hand cut anything!) Once the petals were curled, I used some SNAIL to adhere them together and they were mounted on the card front with two stacked Stampin' Dimensionals.

And, since the outside was so pretty, I HAD to decorate the inside too, so I took the poinsettia stamp and huffed on it, reactivating the remaining ink from earlier. I then stamped it twice in the lower left corner. The greeting was inked with Bravo Burgundy and stamped perfectly straight using my Stamp-A-Ma-Jig! (Patti, are you listening? :) )

I really hope you like this one - I'm just grinning at how it turned out and I have Carol to thank for the great idea! Keep 'em coming stampers!

See you back here tomorrow with another project idea....
~~Robin

Autumn Days Wreath Card

Good morning stampers! It an absolutely GORGEOUS Fall day here today! Bright blue skies, crisp cool air and a few beautiful leaves still on the trees. I'll try to get a few pictures later on when I go out to vote. Emma is still feeling a bit under the weather, but is better than the past two days; and Mark is going back to work today - he says he feels great compared to the weekend. I'm so glad for that! Thanks to all of you for the well wishes and prayers!

The card I'm showing you today is actually one that I created two weeks ago for stamp camp, so it's not new, but I had some trouble with my photo editing software yesterday so I can't show you yet what I made yesterday afternoon.

This card is my version of those popular wreath cards that many of you may have seen on other blogs and websites. It is really easy to make, especially if you like quick but beautiful cards.

I started with the "Give Thanks" greeting from the Holiday Best stamp set by coloring the stamp with Stampin' Write Markers and stamping it in the middle of my Very Vanilla cardstock. It's colored with Chocolate Chip and Ruby Red. Then I took the berries stamp from the Autumn Days stamp set and inked it first in More Mustard, stamping it around the greeting in a circle, inking it up each time I stamped it on the cardstock. This was repeated after cleaning the stamp using Dusty Durango and Old Olive inks. With each layer of color, the wreath gets fuller and richer. So pretty and so easy! The final touch for the wreath is just a little bow of Chocolate Chip 1/4" Grosgrain Ribbon which is attached with a Mini Glue Dot.

The Very Vanilla layer is mounted on a piece of Dusty Durango after adding a bit of Chocolate Chip ink with the sponge. Both of those layers were accented with the Ticket Corner Punch and adhered to a card base of Old Olive. I did add an insert of Very Vanilla to the inside of the card as well which was also sponged with Chocolate Chip ink.

I hope you enjoy the card today as we head into the season of remembrance and thanksgiving. We have much to be thankful for here in our great nation and much to celebrate. As we head to the polls in many states today, remember that our Freedom isn't really Free, it came with a cost - and I, for one am grateful to those who have been willing to pay it. God Bless America and keep her Free and safe.

Stamped blessings,
~~Robin

Trunk or Treat Fun Photos!

Hi friends! Just a few photos this morning to show you how we spent our halloween night. Our church usually does a Harvest Festival INSIDE the school gym each year, but this year we tried something new and did Trunk or Treat in the parking lot instead. Of course, it RAINED, but we didn't let a little rain dampen our fun!
Trunk or Treat is where you decorate the trunk of your car in any theme and pass out candy to the kids who come out for it. We had a few carnival type games set up as well and it really was a fun time for us all.
The first photo is of Emma at our trunk - the Cafe Candy. She was the waitress and chef - boy, that would be nice at home too!

Next, we have the BEST trunk of the event...
Andrew and Beth decided to rake their yard and bring it to the church! Yep, that's Andrew, the pile of leaves and Beth, the rake! In real life, they are Emma's small group leaders!

Everyone had fun passing out candy....eating candy....eating more candy. Need I say more?

There's Granny giving Emma the encouraging thumbs up! Way to go Granny!

Emma and her friend Hannah, dressed up as a halloween present.

Caitlin and Bethany, our two cutest candy seekers!

Emma with our friends the Davids. Their trunk was Super Hero Central! Notice that Scott is the UPS man? That's my super hero for sure! Love those Stampin' Up! boxes he's always bringing to the house!

Jack and Donna got into the action with a pumpkin theme on their motorcycle. You can't see it in the picture, but the license plate reads PUMKIN. Perfect!

Here are our friends the Georges with their undersea adventure. Since it was raining, they felt right at home!

Michelle is smiling because she gets to take all the leftover candy home!

Cindy and Jenn mowed and baled that hay themselves!
Nah, I don't believe it either!

Here's the redneck corner - you'd never know that Bill is our minister of education and administration. Mark P. is just there for the candy!

Our pirate queens Beth and Justine.

And last but not least.....

the two crazy pastors who had this fun idea - Brandon, our youth pastor and Scott our music minister.
Brandon, I hope you got plenty of Twix to last you a while!
Thanks guys for a fun evening!

~~Robin

New Post on It's Way!

We are off to a slow start here today - both Mark and Emma are home sick today. Mark started feeling bad on Saturday and it hit Emma on Sunday during church. So....I'm getting them all settled and fed then I'll be in the studio to get a project up here for you.
I have some fun pics of Trunk or Treat to share with you too!
Back later,
~~Robin