Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween! I hope your Trick or Treating isn't too cold! Our kids have always been lucky enough to go Trick or Treating twice once on the weekend in our area and again on Halloween by Grandma.

I wanted to share one more spooky card for Halloween and I knew that Haunted Mansion was going to be the star! :) 

Recipe:

1. Cut two panels of white cardstock and distress with yellow, orange and brown dye inks.
2. On the largest panel stamp the Vintage Halloween image repeatedly using brown ink until the surface is covered.
3. On the second panel stamp the Christmas Music repeatedly using brown ink until covered. Stamp over that with the crows using brown ink. Highlight with white gel pen.
4. Stamp the tag using brown ink on white cardstock and die cut. 
5. Distress the tag using the same dye inks as the background.
6. Stamp the haunted mansion using brown ink. Highlight with white gel pen.
7. Stamp the sentiment on white cardstock, cut, sponge with dye inks and mount on brown cardstock.
8. For the tags background. Cut brown cardstock to the correct width and make longer than the length of the tag by two inches. Cut bottom with Charlotte Border Die Cut. Tape tag onto brown background in position and trim off top and corners.
9. Add ribbons and assemble card.

Have a spooktacular Halloween!

 

Suzz

Happy House Haunting!

 

Happy day before Halloween!

I am sitting here writing this blog spot and I am looking at a snow covered view from my window! How spooky is that! Snow in urban Philadelphia in Oct. !!!!

Forgive me for using the haunted mansion E1801 and harvest moon G1804 again. They just fit perfectly in this unique opening card. 

A tutorial is worth a thousand words.  I will use scrap paper in my tutorial. 

 Step 1. Place 2 nesties inside each other to create a frame. (yes I know I am cutting on a "no cut plate". This is a do as I say not as I do thing! :) 

Step 2. Using the same oval nestie cut a second oval to stamp your image on.

Step 3. Cut your base card 4 1/4 inches by 11 inches. Score at 2 3/4 inches in from either end. The middle will be 5 1/2 inches. this creates a standard size card when folded.

Step 4. Adhere the frame to the top half of your base card. I edged the bottom fold with black to make this  understandable.

Step 5. Take your oval that you stamp on and adhere it to the bottom half of your card base so when it folds up it fits inside the scalloped frame.

 

Here is the rest of the haunted mansion card now that you know how it works.

 

 

Do you get it? Isn't it the coolest fold and opening. I can't wait to try this out with all Memory Box's new Christmas stamps. 

Have a creative day everyone!

 

 

 

 

Falling Leaves

Hello Everyone,

Today I am going to share with you a card Laura Fisher taught yesterday here at The Stamp Addict in San Diego.

She used a dark brown card base, and a green matt.  Then cut a sheet of white cardstock to 5" x 3 3/4".
She stamped the Oak Leaf Stamp (D1819) in Tim Holtz Distress Ink Black Soot mulitple times.  Next She used Dried Marigold, Crushed Olive and Frayed Burlap Distressed Inks with Daubers to create the marbled background look.  She then used Distress Stickles - Wild Honey, Tea Dye and Shabby Shutters on the leaves (Putting a thick line down the center and spreading it with a paint pursh)

Hope you like the card, I thought it had a nice fall feeling to it!

 

Polar Opposites

I'm bringing you a card and gift tag idea today using the newest stamps and designs from the Polar Bear Studio collection! 

I combined a little Vintage style with Country charm (polar opposites) by dressing Fredward Bear in a red gingham scarf then pairing him with an "aged" tag.  The gift tag pulls out of it's pocket and can be used on a holiday package, homemade baked goods or as a bookmark.  

The snowflakes are glittered the easy way...

  Simply apply double sided tape (Sookwang is my favorite) to a strip of white cardstock, pull off the contact sheet and pile on the micro fine highlight glitter.  Brush off the excess and "burnish" the glitter into the adhesive by firmly rubbing it with your finger.  Now this glitter won't "shed" and it feels as soft as velvet!  Run the glitter strip through the die cut machine using the snowflake die cut and apply a little of your favorite glue to the back and "let it snow" randomly over your card.

Fredward Bear has a little extra layering thanks to the matching die cut.  He was die cut from the stamped white paper then using the same die cut, trace the outline onto light blue paper and hand cut. The traced outline image is slightly larger and creates an extra layer.  For a festive look, paper piece the red gingham scarf.

Here's an overview of all the supplies used to make this card:

Supplies:

98244 Distressed Tag Die

98235 Fredward Bear Die

98279 Snowflake Die

D1833 Fredward Bear Stamp

G1827 Distressed Jingle Bells

B1826 To and From

Inks:

Fired Brick Distressed 

Vintage Photo Distressed 

Gingerbread VersaMagic

Paper:

Water notecard

Kraft notecard

Vanilla Bean Distressed Dots

Ribbon, baker's twine and twine

 

 And that's all there is to it!

Thanks for checking in today---Happy Friday!

Looking out my Window

Okay not really outside my window. :)  But perhaps Dave's?  Sometimes he says his inspiration is outside his window. 

When I saw the new dies for the window and the stamp collage I knew I was going to create a little scene.  The texture on the window and background is created by dragging the ink pad.  I love this effect as it looks like wood grain and you didn't have to do anything but pull in the ink pad across the paper!

The window frame and background were cut from white cardstock and inked up. The main image behind the scene is stamped in brown ink and colored with a touch of red and brown using watercolor pencils. The sentiment was stamped in red ink.  Accent it with some red ribbon, pinecone and berries.

Hope you have fun plans for the weekend!

Suzz

 

Flowering Christmas Tree

I have to say of all the cards I've designed for classes this holiday season, this one tops the list.   From the colors, to the adorable Christmas Carols paper, to the beautiful and intricate Flowering Christmas Tree die...its perfect!

I taught this card in a class at The Scrapbooking Studio this past Saturday and I think everyone really liked it, too.

Here are the deets! 

• Using Flowering Christmas Tree die (98195), die cut a tree from Lagoon Soiree Shimmer paper and one from the teal print paper from the Yuletide 6 X 6 paper pack (10147).  
• I ran both trees through  the Xyron to make the adhesion on the card easier.  Then set aside.
• Attach 4 X 5 1/4" Christmas Carols paper (10138) to a 4 1/8" X 5 3/8" Licorice mat and then adhere to front of a Kraft Note Card.
• Punch a 1 X 5 1/4" strip of teal print paper using the Fiskars Bracket border punch and set aside.
• Adhere 2 X 5 1/4" black snowflake paper (from 6 X 6 Yuletide pack) to 2 1/8" X 5 1/4" Robin’s Egg card stock then adhere the strip of punched teal paper behind the right side of this piece and adhere to front of card.
• Decide which Flowering Christmas Tree you want to be the base.  Then, trim the flowers from the opposite tree and add to top of corresponding flowers on base tree.  When done, remove the tree from the sticker paper and add to front of card.
• Use Essex Label die (98207) and die cut a piece from Lagoon Soiree card stock. Don’t worry about cutting off the right and left side because you will trim these pieces off.
• Stamp Christmas Sparkles (B1775) with Archival Jet Black ink onto white card stock and cut out around stamped line.  Adhere this piece to front of Essex Label and adhere to front of card with foam tape.
•  Add rhinestones to flowers on tree and label.  Accent with Stickles if you want.

Enjoy and have a great day!

Peaceful Polar Bear

I'm having a blast playing with the Polar Bear Studio images and dies.  This card uses some items in unexpected ways.  I thought the Lisette Buckle die looked like a snowflake, so that's how I used it.  I thought the background stamp could be used to add pattern to the paper, so that's what I did.  I had a rough idea in my head for this card -  had a sketch, knew I wanted to use the Fredward bear stamp and some new ribbon that could be used for a card sentiment.  My son called this an ad lib card because it just evolved as I kept adding items.  Hope you like it! 

Here's how it's made:

Stamp Fredward Bear on white card stock with Copic friendly black ink.  Color in the scarf and cut out image.  (There is a matching die for this image, I just don't have it yet.)  Stamp Birch Background on Kraft cardstock with Encore blue ink and heat set.  Die cut three Lisette Buckles from white card stock and color with Distress Weathered Wood stain (blot with paper towel).  Punch two scalloped circles, add glue and chunky glitter.  Cut piece of ribbon and "v" ends.  Corner round top of kraft rectangle.  Assemble card using pop dots under Kraft layer and under polar bear. 

Ingredients:  D1833 Fredward Bear; C1825 Birch Background; 98219 Lisette Buckle; Silver Soiree metallic note card; Memory Box Kraft card stock; B45 Copic marker; Encore Blue ink; Distress Weathered Wood Stain; American Crafts Peace on Earth ribbon; scalloped circle punch; coarse chrystal glitter.   

Thanks so much to my lovely ladies who were students at my class yesterday.  I had fun teaching all of you.  Enjoy the rest of your weekend!  

Don't Forget to Wear Your Mask at the Haunted Mansion!

Greetings, Cardmakers and other crafty types!

I'm very fond of this season's Haunted Mansion stamp because it's really flexible in what you can do with it. (I'm thinking that if I mask off the bats, I can turn this puppy into Grandma's House for a Christmas card!) Today I made a little landscape (a first for me, I believe) and had such a good time with it! Try this and you'll have a good time, too!

S U P P L I E S

PAPER: Memory Box Black Soiree Shimmer and Woodland Path patterned paper, heavy card stock scrap; STAMPS: Haunted Mansion (E1801), Autumn Tree Landscape (E1805) & Happy Halloween Combo (B1391); MEDIUMS: Ranger Distress embossing ink & superfine detail embossing powder (black), VersaMark embossing pen, Diamond Stickles; gems     

T O O L S

Nestability circle die, masking paper, heat tool, anti-static bag/baby powder brush

I N S T R U C T I O N S

1. Make card base (4.25" x 5.5") from Black SSP and set aside.
2. Cut PP panel (4" x 5.25") and brush with anti-static bag or baby powder. 
3. Die cut circle from a scrap of heavy card stock. Discard the cut-out circle and use the scrap with its hole in the middle as a tracing template on your PP. Trace along the hole with your embossing pen, then quickly stamp sentiment stamp sentiment. Apply powder and emboss. 
4. Stamp and emboss mansion on PP.
5. Stamp mansion on masking paper and fussy cut along the outside of the mansion. Cover mansion image on PP with your mansion mask.
6. Stamp trees with embossing ink and remove mansion mask. Apply powder and emboss.
7. Adhere PP panel to card base.
8. Smear Stickles inside moon.
9. Adhere gems.

Easy as punkin' pie, right?

Thanks for visiting and have a blessed day!

 

Simple Collage

Sometimes you're just drawn to an image.  That was the case for me with this collage stamp.  I had something else planned for my fourth project for a November class, but when I saw this stamp -- I had to use it.  The theme for the class is Quick and Easy Christmas cards; so if you wanted to use a Christmas sentiment you could layer it over the "winter" on the stamp. 

Here's how this easy card was created.  Stamp Winter Collage Background with Waterproof ink on parchment card stock.  For an easy watercolor method -- swipe your choice of Distress inks on a nonstick craft sheet and spritz with water.  Using a fairly fine tipped brush, color in the pine cones, pine branches, holly, and bird.  For the berries use a gelly roll pen to stop the ink from running when adding glimmer later.  When the berries are dry, spray your image with Perfect Pearls Biscotti.  It produces a subtle sheen.  After you trim the collage image, sponge the edges with Antique Linen.  Add a layer of crimson and mount on a Thistle note card.  This card would be easily reproducible (is that a word) for Christmas cards or Christmas thank you cards.

  Supplies:

• G1830 Winter Collage Background
• Thistle Note Card
• Parchment Card Stock, Crimson Card Stock
• Inks:  Ancient Page Chocolate; Distress – Bundled Sage, Shabby Shutters, Brushed Corduroy, Antique Linen
• Sakura Gelly Roll Glaze pen – Med. Red
• Perfect Pearls Biscotti

This stamp is part of the Polar Bear Studio release.  I hope you're able to see this collection in person the dies are amazing.  Enjoy your Thursday!

Happy Stamping,

The Newest Release!!!

Can't wait to start sharing ideas using the just-released Polar Bear Studio Collection...16 great stamps and 35 versatile dies! There's even a Wesley Bear Stamp (D1832) and Die (98234) named after Theresa's adorable dog.  It takes a very special dog (and dog-owners) to be selected as the namesake of a Polar Bear stamp and die.  

We're having a great time in the fall and winter classes at Impress - and everyone loves the intricate Memory Box Dies - especially when used with the Soiree Shimmer Cardstock.  I love hearing students "oh-h-h and ah-h-h" over the beautifully-detailed diecuts we can create with Dave's dies and the Soiree Collection.  Special thanks to everyone who takes my classes!

Visit our Memory Box Classes blog too - for a state-by-state listing of classes by our Design Team, and Design Editor Theresa Laurent.  Wouldn't it be great to find a Memory Box class somewhere you'll be visiting soon?

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