6x6 "LOVE YOU" PAGE

When I was making the cuts for the last "love you" project, this was actually the first one that I made. It was too large to use on my card, so I decided to use it on a 6x6 scrapbook page! I still need to find the perfect picture for it (and I have one in mind), but I need to find it. SU products used to create this page are Close to Cocoa, Purely Pomegranate, and Whisper White card stock, Stampin' Dimensionals, Berry Bliss designer paper, Boho Blossoms punch, and the 5-Petal Flower punch.

ETA: The finished product . . . I found the "perfect" photo of Renee and Malena, so I guess I'll have to give this page to Renee. ;-)

CUT & WELDED

I had a little fun playing with the Cricut this evening. I recently purchased the DesignStudio software for the machine so I could hook it up to the computer, but I haven't read all the ways to use this software. This card is proof positive that reading instructions is, sometimes, optional. ;-) Come to think of it, I haven't even read the manual that came with the machine yet! Bad girl, I know! Anyway, I wanted to try "welding" letters, which is the software's way of allowing you to create attached letters/phrases. The letters and two white hearts in the "love you" phrase are all joined (welded) together, which is awesome! It's much easier to adhere the whole kit and kaboodle without having to work with the letters individually. The floral image is from the "One of a Kind" stamp set, and I used Stampin' Dimensionals on all of the cut layers on this card. That gorgeous paper, of course, is from the "Berry Bliss" designer series paper collection.

A BOX IS A BOX, RIGHT?

Why is it that boxes are so intriguing to stampers? Whenever I see one, my mind always begins to wonder . . . how hard is it to make, what would I use it for, how should I decorate it, etc. This box is quite an odd size, mainly because I (unknowingly at the time) didn't exactly follow the instructions, but a box is still a box, right? What made this box a ton of fun is that I used Rub-Ons to decorate it. The floral vine along the bottom and the "happy day" on the lid are rub-ons from one of the Sale-A-Bration products that will be available Feb. 1 - March 17 from Stampin' Up! There are four sheets of rub-ons in the pack, they all have the same images, but each sheet is a different color . . . black, white, Chocolate Chip, and Old Olive. With any $50+ order during the Sale-A-Bration (SAB) period, you can choose one of the SAB products. Other SU products used to make this box include the Scallop punch, Horizontal Slot punch, Circle punches, Soft Sky Double-Stitched Grosgrain ribbon, "Big Pieces" and "Little Pieces" stamp sets, Vintage eyelets, and 5/8" Chocolate Chip Grosgrain ribbon (to cover up a little scoring boo-boo). Even with it's minor imperfections, this box is still a box.

A LIGHT UNTO MY PATH

Just wanted to share my first creation with this new stamp set, "A Light Unto my Path." I colored the lighthouse image with Metallic Pencils, and put some Crystal Effects on top of the "water." The two background stamps that I used were "Sanded" and "Weathered."

PENNY SPINNER CARD

I've never attempted to upload a video to my blog without Chadrick's help, so I hope this attempt works. If so, you'll be able to see the Penny Spinner Card in action. This card was created with the Big Pieces and Little Pieces stamp sets and that awesome new Berry Bliss designer paper! Assorted punches and Stampin' Dimensionals were also used to create this project.

GLITTER, GLITTER EVERYWHERE!

I've been playing with glitter and LOVE that stuff! I'm having to learn as I go, but I can tell you a few things:

1) It's best to NOT pour the glitter onto your project (unless it's a huge project) because when you go to pour the leftover glitter back into the container, you end up losing (wasting) some of it because of its static tendency. I like to use a Q-tip (for lack of a better solution, yet undiscovered) to just drop a small amount of glitter where I want it and then just "sweep" it around onto the adhesive. Always remember: a little bit of glitter goes a looooonnnnnggggg way!

2) Which adhesive to use? Well, I've used mini glue dots for small glittered circles, and you want to be sure you don't handle the dot too much or it will lose its tackiness. SU's new Tombow Multi Purpose Adhesive works wonderfully! You can also sprinkle glitter onto Crystal Effects (you might can even stir it into the CE and brush it wherever you want it), and 2-Way Glue is always good. Sticky Strip is yet another option. Speaking of Sticky Strip, I will show you two projects I did using SU's brand new "Sticky Cut Letters." If you can imagine two 12x12 sheets of Sticky Strip that have been die cut with letters, numbers, and a couple of shapes, then you can imagine what the Sticky Cut Letters product is all about. They're awesome because all you do is choose the one you want, apply it to your project, peel off the red liner, and glitter, glitter, glitter!

3) Glittered projects are HARD to photograph, but that sparkly stuff REALLY takes a project to a new, exciting level!

In the photo above, I used the "Nursery Necessities" stamp set, and glittered the edge of the moon with Light Blue glitter from the "Fine Cosmo" stack. The punched star was also glittered, but I used Dazzling Diamonds and 2-Way Glue for that. BTW, the moon was adhered to the project with Stampin' Dimensionals, and the sailboat was outlined with a Going Gray marker.

The heart on this card came from the "Sticky Cut Letters," and I decided to try something different by using two colors (Orchid and Celery) from the "Fine Cosmo Glitter" stack. I'm quite pleased with how it turned out! The sentiment is from the level 1 hostess set, "For a Friend" and the heart in the center of the flower was glittered with Tombow Multi Purpose Adhesive. This card also features Rhinestone Brads (Ice, square) and "From the Garden" (level 1 hostess set). I used a brayer to ink that huge floral background image and then placed the portions of the card that I wanted stamped directly onto the stamp.

The "b" on this card is another one of the "Sticky Cut Letters" that I glittered. I used the Turquoise glitter from the "Fine Cosmo" stack, and it is a BEAUTIFUL blue!!!! I can't say that I love this card, but I do love the "b".

So . . . if you learned anything from this post, it's that you can add glitter to your stampin' supplies, and you have choices of how to use it! As I make other discoveries or hear of other uses, I will be sure to pass them along. BTW, the ribbons used on this card are Tempting Turquoise 1/4" grosgrain and Kraft Taffeta, but the Kraft color is an almost exact match to Sahara Sand.

ADDED MORE COUNTRY TUNES

Since I started this blog, my mother has told me a couple of times that "there's music on there that you're too old to listen to" or "I couldn't concentrate to read your blog because of that wild music." Apparently, the "wild" songs are the ones that always come up when she's here, but I haven't been able to turn her onto them. So . . . I spent some time this evening adding more country songs. As I searched for them, one would lead to another, and I found some older ones that I remembered hearing when I was at the age to like today's wild music. One of the songs I found, though, was one I'd never heard before . . . Tracy Lawrence's "If I Don't Make It Back." Whew! That one will give chills--if not tears! What struck a chord with me is that my neighbor is currently serving in Iraq, and his wife's name is Amy. It's a nice song so, if you're not going to be here long enough to wait for that tune to play, just scroll down to find and select it. Another great one that I had never heard before is Brad Paisley's "Letter to Me." Lord, have mercy! Who among us wouldn't agree with that one?

CARD STOCK COLORS THAT MATCH DESIGNER PAPER

I thought this information might be useful to you! While these are matching colors, you may find additional color coordinates for the designer paper in the following collections.

Azure: Very Vanilla, Brilliant Blue

Bali Breeze: Pumpkin Pie, Whisper White, Old Olive, Rose Red, Taken with Teal

Berry Bliss: Close to Cocoa, Whisper White, Pretty in Pink, Purely Pomegranate

Cutie Pie: Bashful Blue, Basic Black, Certainly Celery, Rose Red, So Saffron, Whisper White

East Coast Prep: Real Red, Whisper White, More Mustard, Wild Wasabi, Tempting Turquoise

Fall Flowers: Old Olive, Really Rust, Sahara Sand, Soft Sky, Whisper White

Ginger Blossom: Cameo Coral, Groovy Guava, Ruby Red, River Rock, Very Vanilla

Jersey Shore: Brilliant Blue, Pumpkin Pie, Wild Wasabi, Bashful Blue, Whisper White

Le Jardin: River Rock, Soft Sky, So Saffron, Very Vanilla

Notebook: Soft Sky, Kraft, Very Vanilla

Olive Press: Old Olive, Very Vanilla

Porcelain Prints: Blue Bayou, River Rock, Wild Wasabi

Spring Break: Pumpkin Pie, Old Olive, Soft Sky, Wild Wasabi, Blue Bayou, Whisper White

Spring Fling: Pretty in Pink, Sage Shadow, So Saffron, Certainly Celery

Spring Silhouettes: Soft Sky, Wild Wasabi, Certainly Celery, Very Vanilla

Western Sky: Ruby Red, Soft Sky, River Rock, Blue Bayou, Whisper White

THINGS AREN'T ALWAYS AS THEY SEEM

While winding down this evening, I found a neat project to try . . . a stack of "letters" where the top envelope opens (like a lid) to reveal a cut-out portion through the other envelopes to reveal a hidden box. Of course, I had to drag out some supplies and see if I could create my own secret box. I began by inserting thin cardboard in the envelopes, sealed them, and then used a Sizzix die to cut the crescent tag shape in each envelope. Since a stack of letters/mail is hardly ever neatly lined up, I altered the placement of the die on the envelopes and then stacked them so that the crescent tag cuts--not the envelopes--were neatly lined up to form the box! The top envelope was decorated to mimic a real one with postage. I typed the 41¢ portion in Word, printed it, used a Cuttlebug die to cut the postage pieces, and then stamped them collage-style. I decided my envelope needed to look distressed, so I sponged some Creamy Caramel ink on it. To create the coffee cup stain, I poured some of Fadi's leftover coffee in a saucer, sat the bottom of a cup in the saucer, and then sat the cup on the corner of the envelope. Voila! A real coffee cup stain! ETA: The box has three beaded bracelets in it.

SU IN THE NEWS

The Co-founder and CEO of Stampin' Up!, Shelli Gardner, donated 85 cabins on a 7-day cruise to Bermuda to a select 85 Utah National Guard members. How awesome! You can read all about it at http://www.ksl.com/index.php?nid=148&sid=2502054.

AND THE SCARY PART IS . . . SOME OF IT'S TRUE!

***What Regina Means***
You are wild, crazy, and a huge rebel. You're always up to something.You have a ton of energy, and most people can't handle you. You're very intense.You definitely are a handful, and you're likely to get in trouble. But your kind of trouble is a lot of fun.
You are friendly, charming, and warm. You get along with almost everyone.You work hard not to rock the boat. Your easy going attitude brings people together.At times, you can be a little flaky and irresponsible. But for the important things, you pull it together.
You are deeply philosophical and thoughtful. You tend to analyze every aspect of your life.You are intuitive, brilliant, and quite introverted. You value your time alone.Often times, you are grumpy with other people. You don't appreciate them trying to interfere in your affairs.
You tend to be pretty tightly wound. It's easy to get you excited... which can be a good or bad thing.You have a lot of enthusiasm, but it fades rather quickly. You don't stick with any one thing for very long.You have the drive to accomplish a lot in a short amount of time. Your biggest problem is making sure you finish the projects you start.
You are very intuitive and wise. You understand the world better than most people.You also have a very active imagination. You often get carried away with your thoughts.You are prone to a little paranoia and jealousy. You sometimes go overboard in interpreting signals.
You are usually the best at everything ... you strive for perfection. You are confident, authoritative, and aggressive. You have the classic "Type A" personality.
What's Your Name's Hidden Meaning?http://www.blogthings.com/whatsyournameshiddenmeaningquiz/

PINWHEEL CENTERPIECE

Have you noticed the designer paper pinwheels on page 67 of the new catalog? I fell in love with them and decided to try them tonight. I wasn't sure what I'd do with them, so I decided to just do as SU had done . . . put them in something glass! I went a step further, though, and added some Eastern Elegance Rub-Ons (the white flower on the glass and the "you make me smile" sentiment on the ribbon). Pretty cool, huh? I really wanted to use some Jelly Beans in the bottle, but I had to settle for bath salts. Fortunately, they were the perfect color (don't you just love it when things come together), and I'd had them for a year or so--just taking up space on a shelf! Wouldn't this centerpiece be perfect for a Spring/Summer event? Truth be told, this project took less than an hour to create, and I even applied the Rub-Ons after I'd already filled the bottle with bath salts and tied the ribbon in a knot! Super easy!

VALENTINE HEART BOXES & SHOPPING BAG

This weekend, I had more Cricut fun! One of the cartridges that I have for the machine is Tags, Bags, Boxes & More, and I LOVE that cartridge! It has a good selection of boxes from which to choose! I made two of the heart boxes. The Elegant Eggplant box isn't decorated, but I used "Boatloads of Love" to decorate the green box. My other project is a shopping bag, and I used the window feature so the machine would cut that for me. It's hard to tell from the picture, but I adhered a piece of acetate to cover the window opening so the Hershey's Kisses could be seen. This bag is decorated with the "Priceless" stamp set using Pink Passion ink.

BINDER CLIP PHOTO HOLDER

Is this a cute little dilly, or what???? Best of all, it took about 5 minutes to make--and that includes the time it took to scratch my head, bite the right side of my lip and say "Hmmm . . . how do I want to decorate this." That gorgeous paper is from the Ginger Blossom collection, and the stamped image is from "Embrace Life." I colored the image with an aqua painter using Ruby Red and Groovy Guava inks. I used the 1-1/4" and 1-3/8" circle punches and layered those two sizes on the punched scallop circle, to which I added a touch of doodle art. I don't know if I was right to start doodling the scallop circles because now they look naked without those tiny doodles. To finish this project, I tied a bow of River Rock double-stitched grosgrain ribbon.

A CRICUT FOR CHRISTMAS

Ignore the fact that we're well into January . . . my Christmas gift just arrived yesterday . . . a Cricut Expression Electronic Cutter. Of course, Fadi and Chadrick were very good to have some fun Cricut accessories for me at Christmas--I just didn't have the machine in time. I didn't have a lot of time to play with my new gadget, but I did manage to try cuts from my three cartridges. While I don't know even a fraction of what this machine can do, I can tell you that it's seemingly easy to operate, and its precision is AMAZING! In this post, I'm uploading just a couple of pictures of my "test" items. The letters are 1.5" high, the box is 2.5" square, and the paisley accent is 3.5" x 2.5". To cut the paisley accent, I first cut it from white card stock and then decided to cut the same image using the "Shadow" feature. For the shadow, I used Regal Rose textured card stock. How awesome is that??? I had a good idea tonight. Since the Cricut can cut some pretty big letters, I'm thinking that the next time Fadi makes me mad, I can spell out . . . on the wall or his bathroom mirror . . . the words I'd like to say! Of course, I could spell out "THANKS SO MUCH!" That would probably be most appropriate at the moment. Goodness knows, that man has been quite tolerant and supportive of my creative interests and all the gadgets that "I just have to have."

ETA: I realize my "paisley accent" isn't really a paisley--I'm just not sure what else to call it. Just squint until your vision is blurred, and maybe it will look like a paisley. ;-)

VALENTINE HERSHEY'S KISSES HOLDER

Without the Kisses, but you get the idea, right? This neat little project will hold 5 Hershey's Kisses--if you have them. ;-)

STEP RIGHT UP!

And hand me your order for these AWESOME Rub-Ons! I stayed up late last night putting the finishing touches on this card, and I had the best time! Goodness! These little morsels can just about be rubbed onto ANYTHING! As you can tell by this card, I used black and white designs on the clear button (I don't know what happened to the "g" in "thing" . . . it's probably rubbed onto the countertop or something . . . LOL), but doesn't the white design look great on the ribbon? I wasn't sure how that was going to turn out, but I'm impressed! I used a sheet of Bali Breeze Designer Series Paper to cover the chipboard heart and then sanded (distressed) the edges with a sanding block. I backed the clear button with the other side (dotted design) of that same designer paper so it would coordinate with the ribbon strip.