MSM's Solemn Stillness

I need 16 - 20 more Christmas cards.  (sigh)  I thought I had enough.  No worries.  I'm having fun making cards.  I checked in with my go-to challenges over on SCS: CAS, Color Challenge and Sketch Challenge.  I figured I best pick a stamp set first.  So, I picked another go-to: SU!'s Solemn Stillness.  There are so many possibilities with this stamp set.

Next, I chose the color challenge:  Chocolate Chip, Crumb Cake and Pool Party.  Really? Pool Party. That name so does not go with winter in Kentucky.  LOL.  BUT, adding touches of silver and bouncing off the Sketch Challenge, it made a lovely card.

I made four of this style, which is my favorite number for successful mass production.  I probably could do up to 10 maximum.  But, I did four.  And am very happy with them.

Stay tuned for more variations on Solemn Stillness!

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a moo'valous day!

Stamps: SU! Solemn Stillness & Christmas Greetings
Paper: SU! Chocolate Chip, Crumb Cake & Whisper White
Ink: SU! Pool Party & Chocolate Chip, Versamark
Accessories: SU! Sterling Silver DP & silver cord

Inspired!

I decided to check out the regularly scheduled challenge on Splitcoaststampers dot com.  It was the color challenge.  Rich Razzleberry, Lucky Limeade and Daffodil Delight!   So, I went to "my favorites" to see what I had saved to CASE...decided on SU! Inspired by Nature stamp set....and came up with this.

I used SU! markers to color the image, "huffed" on the colored image and stamped! 

 

I really do like this stamped on the SU! Newsprint DSP!

 

The bow with a button in the middle was the "extra credit". 

Hope you enjoyed today's project.  Thanks for stopping by!  Have a moo'valous day!

SUPPLIES

Stamps: Inspired by Nature

Paper: Very Vanilla, Rich Razzleberry, Lucky Limeade, Newsprint DSP

Accessories: Rich Razzleberry Button (from Brights), Linen Thread, Daffodil Delight Seam Binding, Markers (Rich Razzleberry, Lucky Limeade, Daffodil Delight)

Happy Mother's Day MOM!

FINALLY!  Time to stamp & create a card!  This is the Sale-A-Bration 2012 paper...Everyday Enchantment + matching ribbon + matching brads!  I sponged Soft Suede around each panel & layer for a vintage look.

I even decorated the envelope...sponging ink, stamping and adding an embellished tag.  The tag is adorned with a doily and lace ribbon.  I did not mail this card...I hand delivered it Sunday...before we went to see The Avengers!  whoo hoo.  :-D  My favorite Avenger...IRON MAN! 

Even the inside of the card is adorned!  The image was colored with SU! markers, huffed on & stamped on Very Vanilla.  The panel was sponged around the edge with Soft Suede.  At the top of the panel is lace tape.  It's hard to see...and it looks like magic tape...but it has a white lace design.

I added a counterfeit Washi Tape flag to complete the sentiment.  to my WONDERFUL Mom!

Here's a really good look a the lace tape!  This is the back of the card.  

I hope you had a moo'valous Mother's Day!  I thoroughly enjoyed my day.  Chocolate dipped strawberries, a beautiful card and a gift card + breakfast bar at Ryan's from the hubby...and then movies with Mom and Phillip!  Yup...moo'valous day indeed!

Thanks for stopping by! 

Supplies (all products Stampin' Up! unless otherwise indicated)

STAMPS - Messages for Mom, Fresh Vintage, Family Reunion

PAPER - Everyday Enchantment DSP, Calypso Coral, Pool Party, Very Vanilla

INK - Soft Suede, Basic Black, Poppy Parade, Calypso Coral

ACCESSORIES - Avery Shipping Tag, Wilton 4" Doily, Crochet Trim Victoria 5/8", Cream Envelope, Washi Tape (Targer & Freckled Fawn), toothpick, Everyday Enchantment Brads, Everyday Enchantment 1/8" Organdy Ribbon in Calypso Coral, SU! Markers in Lucky Limeade, Calypso Coral and Poppy Parade.

Phillip @ 16

I was looking for some paper to use for this picture and for the upteenth time passed by this SU! Specialty Pack...was I saving it for a "special project"?  HUH?  What's more special than this project?  ;-)

I don't remember the name of this SU! Specialty paper pack, but I used the heavy shimmery copper, the satin stripe Whisper White and the stain stripe Crumb Cake.  I love it!  It really did not photograph well. 

I'm no longer a paper hoarder.  Seriously.  How am I going to enjoy the beautifuf paper when the paper is in a drawer?  I'm not.  Or the pictures while they are in a frame in the closet or an envelope in a box?  I'm not. 

I can now just open an album...and enjoy the pictures for which I handed over a bunch of FRNs AND the gorgeous paper that...well...I had to hand over a bunch of FRNs for, too.  LOL.  Point is...if it's good enough to buy, good enough to keep, find a way to enjoy it.  I think I watched WAY to much Clean Sweep.  LOL.  Nope...I like that show!  The one thing I took away from that show is if you're gonna keep something, honor it.  Place it somewhere you can enjoy it.  Otherwise, it probably needs to go.

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a moo'valous day!

Phillip is EIGHT!

I love this mix of patterned papers!  The purple is pulled from the moddled background!  Perfect plum!  Yummy!  All products Stampin' Up!  'cept the kid...and the photograph. 

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a moo'valous day!

Phillip is SIX!

And I love Blues Clues!  I found a clue!  I found a clue!

Let's get out our handy dandy notebook...ah.  I found the Blues Clues print on the Nick Jr website!  I paired it up with SU! Night of Navy & Pacific Point.  (sigh)  What can I say...I love Blue! 

Did you watch Blues Clues with your kiddo? 

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a moo'valous day!

Phillip @ 12

Just graduated from elementary school!  No not recently...but back in 2006.  I'm taking a trip back down the memory lane this week scrapping the annual formal pics of my son, Phillip.

Same layout, different papers, different photo, different look and feel.

This is a combination of DSP from SU! Ski Slope and Tall Tales.  I was pulling my colors from his necktie.  I didn't not want more black as a dominant color, nor did I want to compete with the red.  The tie has blue, soft yellow & brown as well as black with white stripes.  I chose the soft yellow and the chocolately brown.  I had no idea what to use for my third color.  Then I rememberd a DTGD challenge on SCS to "fall back on black".  As an accent, the black worked out well.

I decided to use SU! scallop trim border punch on the black strip to give it some punch.  LOL.

The focus of these pages is the formal picture.  All the pictures have a different feel and I liked the layout so much, so I chose to use the same layout for each picture.  I love digging through my DSP stash.  It feels GREAT to be using this stuff! 

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a moo'valous day!

Phillip @ 14!

This was the last formal picture made while he had his braces. 

I asked Phillip what colors would go good with this black & white picture...um...black & white, he said.  LOL.  I added the pop of Pacific Point!  That DSP is a specialty pack...I think it's actually a Halloween DSP pack.  The name is Night & Day. 

I busted out the new lace border punch.  I know...lace on a boy page...but this doesn't look girly at all! 

This has to be my favorite page so far. 

I just love the elegance of a black & white photo...but it's a casual pose...and one handsome young man!

Same layout as Monday and Tuesday...different papers, different pictures, different looks.

This is fun!  Thanks for stopping by!  Have a moo'valous day!

Phillip @ 15!

Oh my goodness.  I about cried after I got this one done.  I guess I hadn't had any time to ENJOY this picture.  But I do now.  See...

I found the perfect place for it to hang on the wall of my stamp room / office / game room / tv room. 

Same layout as yesterday...but all patterned paper from SU!'s retired Prestwick.  Numerals are SU! Timeless Type chipboard.  I did add a Becky Higgins journaling card to this one, tucked under the photo. 

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a moo'valous day!

Phillip is FIVE!

I'm getting up my courage to scrap all those formal 8 x 10 pictures from each birthday!  Here's number FIVE!

I've now created the first page for his baby book.  LOL.  It wasn't too bad.  I used glue dots to adhere the picture to a Night of Navy mat and then double matted with Early Expresso.  I love how the Early Expresso brings out his dark brown sparkling eyes.

This layout was scraplifted from a page by Mary Larson as shown in Creating Keepsakes, a treasury of favorites.  I die cut the title from SU!'s Simple Letters Alphabet.  There might be journaling in the blank Soft Suede section under the title...then again, there might not. 

It's very clean & simple.  I wanted to make the photo the focal point of the page...as it was the whole point of the page.  LOL. 

It feels good to be starting on this.  I've thought about it for a long time.  I want to look at these & enjoy these when I'm in the  mood, not look at the box they are stored in. 

Well...thanks for stopping by!  Have a moo'valous day!

Paper Piercing

There are several paper piercing challenges out this week!  I didn't plan to use paper piercing on this SMASHbook page, but it ws sure screaming for it!

And whadayano!  It fit the bill!  Don't ya just love it when a project just comes right on together!

I took the picture during tax season of a stack of returns.  I love the naked chipboard...I found it on the SU! clearance rack - Timeless Type. 

The manila tag is cut from old manila folders.  I created a stack of these in various sizes a while back.  I was pleasantly surprised to see that the largest tag fits perfectly in the SU! Rectangle Glassine envelope!  The calendar, I printed from the web.  And I freehand pierced around the numerals and pound sign so they would stand out against the background. 

So glad I found a use for a sheet of that "office supply" DSP I purchased from SU!  I'm pretty pleased with this page...it feels good to be using up the ole' stash! 

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a moo'valous day!

a SMASHing Idea Book Pagination

My SMASHing idea book is coming along with each project I create.  Sometimes I do make the page before I put away the supplies from my projects, other times it's all about the page.  The sets are in random order, so I have an index...

a SMASHing idea book - Index

...and page numbers...

a SMASHing idea book - Page numbers at the bottom of most pages

a SAMSHing idea book - Page numbers at the top of some pages

My SMASHing idea book is not an alphabetical index of what I HAVE, but rather an idea book of how to use what I have.  My goal is to write down ideas before I purchase a set, then when the sets get here, make the SMASH book pages.  I'll eventually have both - a stamp inventory AND an idea of what I wanted to use those sets for.  The ultimate goal is to use what I have.  Ideally, I won't be stumped for a crafting idea because I have realized there is no way humanly possible to use every craft product I have.  I just have to keep my mojo flowing and if using an idea books on days it's not flowing freely gets it flowing, then I'm all for it.  I have lots of ideas for things but I cannot do them all at once and I cannot use up precious brain cells trying to remember all of them.  Brain cells are getting in short supply anyway. 

When I started my page numbering, I chose my favorite SU! products.

Tidy Numbers (retired)

Tidy Alphabet and Tidy Numbers is my go to set!  Easy to trim and looks good with just about everything!

Wild Wasabi ink.

A great way to use up scraps!

I do a little at a time, so I don't get bored and so I can use up scraps!  Works for me.  Have ou given any thought to how you inventory your stamp sets and / or keep up with your ideas for particular stamp sets?  How do you do it?

On another note, I still haven't decoreated the outside of the book yet.  LOL.

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a moo'valous day.

Paper & Pockets

I'm always on the lookout for journaling goodies.  It's hard for me to find that thing that will get me the "most bang for my buck".  The other day, I saw something at papertreyink that I loved.  A spiral notebook page die and a library pocket die!  Oh yes! 

Then I remembered...how silly to have a DIE to cut a rectangle.  HELLO?  Got a paper cutter? 

I set out to see if I could re-create without the DIE and with my FRNs intact.  (FRN - Federal Reserve Notes).  ;-) 

First up...spiral paper.   I grabbed a couple sheets of Whisper White cardstock & started cutting.

Dimensions for the faux spiral notebook paper.

I originally planned to use SU!'s Spiral Punch...but it just didn't look right.  Then I got to looking at that die again...and the holes are circular.  Hmmmm....how do I do this?

That'll work.  Now to punch 'em out!

Here's a comparison of the circular holes vs the SU! Spiral Punch.

Ok.  I was feeling cheap...this is not looking "perfect".  WHOA!  Back up the train here!  Perfect...it's not supposed to be perfect!  Each item is not supposed to match exactly.  It's hand crafted...granted...it's not TACKY, but the whole purpose of creating is to create, right?  OK.  I keep chugging along here...still sorta pining away for that die...I'm not giving up yet.

It's gotta look like it was ripped out.

Oh yeah...the die has perforations.  I know...that "handy dandy" SU! Cutter Tool.

Ahem...now, this was a frustrating experiment.  That "handy dandy" SU! Cutter Tool, among other things, has a perforation tool.  Now, I could NOT get it to go straight, even againt a ruler.  And I chugged and I chugged...I mean, I tried and tried.  Then, I got frustrated.  Bah!

I looked at the die, again...wait a minute...is that a row of round dots?  Uh, huh.  I grabbed the stitching template and the paper piercer and poked holes.  That was fun!  It's right up there with popping bubble wrap!  :-D  Poking holes in cardstock with a paper piercer!  Fun!

Lined notebook paper needs lines.  I don't need a stamp for lines either.  I used a ruler, Bashful Blue marker and the grid on the mat from the mat stack.  And NOPE, the lines are not perfectly spaced on each one of them.  That's ok.  They still look good.

Pile of hand designed spiral notebook paper.

These will make awesome journaling cards...they are unique and they have light lines for journaling.

Supplies.

I had fun with this...now I need a pocket...I'm drooling for a pocket die.  I no longer want the spiral paper die.  Now that I know how to make my own faux spiral notebook paper, I have no desire to purchase the die nor the stamp when I have the supplies, right here, on hand. 

I'll show ya the pocket I created tomorrow!

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a moo'valous day.

Grid Lines for SU! Clear Blocks

Yippee!  My SU! order arrived tonight...included was the new grid line templates to add to the clear blocks.

My initial thought was how heck do I get these on the block STRAIGHT?!  Oh boy. 

Then it hit me...SU! grid line paper!  Line the block up in the corner...

Peel off the...whatcha call it...well...cling vinyl.  Line up one line on the vinyl with a line you can see through the block.  You gotta stand up...and hover over the block.  Then just lay the vinyl over the block...it smoothes right out.  Use the same technique you use to stamp clear stamps using clear blocks.  The cling vinyl grid line template doesn't have to be perfectly in the center of the block; but it should be straight in relation to the edge of the block.  I had some overlap in the larger clear block, but the cling vinyl clings really well and it smoothes right over.  I cleaned the side of the block I was adding the vinyl to and I will use the other side for stamps. 

I only did two blocks - I use these two most at the moment.  The others, I will add if I must have a need for grid lines on a different sized block.  Not a big deal because I thought it was really simple & quick to add the grid line templates.  They remove cleanly and go right back on the sheet (for storage).  They come in a zip top bag with a piece of sturdy cardboard.  I'm impressed.  I like them because I can remove them if I don't need them; put them back on quickly if I do.

Well, that was just one thing...I have some other things in the order...things for my son's baby book and for those...ahem...onesies.

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a moo'valous day!

Shabby Chic Cards (Part 1 - Thank You)

Remember all this - the die cut doilies, butterflies and strips 'n' scraps of beuatiful SU! designer paper - I showed ya a few days ago?

Pick one from each pile, put 'em together; repeat THREE times.  I got these:

Ain't dey purty?

Thank You #1

Thank You #1 (Inside & Envelope)

Thank You #2

Thank You #2 (Inside & Envelope)

Thank You #3

Thank You #3 (Inside & Envelope)

This time, I did the insides and the coordinating envelopes.  I did not have any thank you sentiments to stamp inside; however, I did find a list of thank you sentiments on SCS that I will hand write inside the card depending on who or what the card is for.  So while the cards were mass produced, they will still have a unique personal touch especially for the recipient.

Thank you for stopping by.  Have a moo'valous day!

SUPPLIES (all supplies Stampin' Up! unless indicated otherwise)

Stamps:  Wonderful Words, Bliss

Ink:  Basic Black, Pretty in Pink, Daffodil Delight, Pumpkin Pie, Melon Mambo, Wisteria Wonder

Paper:  PTI White, Flirtatious DSP

Accessories:  Baker's Twine - White; Button Boutique Sherbet; paper piercer & mat, paper snips, Big Shot, Beautiful Butterflies (die), Janome' sew mini & white thread, mono multi, Tasteful Trims (die), corner rounder.