FUN STITCHES

When I first saw the "Sew Suite" stamp set in Stampin' Up!'s Occasions mini catalog, my first thought was that I had to have it.  Even though I don't sew, that "tomato" pin cushion reminded me of the one that my mother had (probably still has), and I believe my grandmother also had/has one.  I also really liked the idea of the assorted stitch images on the "In Stitches" jumbo wheel; however, my preference would have been individual stamps and not six assorted images on one wheel.  After some thought, I decided that I could remove the rubber from the wheel, cut the images apart, and use them unmounted or mount them on wood blocks.  I have a very large box FULL of retired stamp sets, so I raided the box and found the perfect set to destroy for the sake of harvesting the wood . . . "Both Way Blossoms" had four 6.25" x 1" blocks.  I removed the labels and stamps from those blocks and used Crystal Effects to adhere the six stitch images to them.  I had to trim each stamp just a bit (less than an inch) so they would fit on the wood.  Still, what a deal!!  $8.50 for six stamps!  Two of the blocks have a stamp on both sides, but they work just fine!  I used two of the stitch images on this card, as well as the new "Sew Suite" stamp set.  Other Stampin' Up! products used to complete this card include "Teeny Tiny Wishes," So Saffron, Baja Breeze, Rose Red, and Whisper White card stock, aqua painter, Watercolor Pencils and markers, Stamp-a-ma-jig, and distressing tool.  Of course, I can see a few things that I would do different and can think of a few additions but, all in all, I actually am very pleased with the simplicity of this design.  FYI:  The blue dot that you see on one end of two blocks indicates which end of the block goes into the corner of the Stamp-a-ma-jig.