BLOOMIN' BEAUTIFUL

I was supposed to work on a swap, and I had high hopes of working on some holiday card designs this morning, but "Bloomin' Beautiful" called to me. From the shelf, it was hollering and waving it's rubber arms, saying "Choose me, choose me!!!" I love this stamp set!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Other SU products used to create this card include "Paisley" background stamp, Prestwick designer paper, Vanilla Hodgepodge Hardware (it's so gorgeous!!!!), Kiwi Kiss satin ribbon, "Warm Words" stamp set, aqua painter, Designer Label and Small Oval punches, Sahara Sand, Baja Breeze, Kiwi Kiss, and Black StazOn ink, and Whisper White, Basic Gray, Sahara Sand, and Baja Breeze card stock.

A GAGGLE OF PUNCHES

This card required a gaggle of punches . . . 3/4" circle, 3/4" square, 1/4" circle, scallop circle, Boho Blossoms, and 1-1/4" circle. I think that's all of them. Card stock colors are Kiwi Kiss, Riding Hood Red, Tangerine Tango, Chocolate Chip, Naturals Ivory, More Mustard, and Basic Black. That warm felt ribbon is from the "Alpine" Ribbon Originals available in the Holiday mini catalog.

FUN "BIG SHOT" PROJECT

The other day, I made a box using the Scallop Envelope die. Today, I used the scallop envelope flap (four of them) to build the lid for this box. It's hard to tell from my pictures, but the Scallop Envelope die not only cuts the shape, it also embosses the scallop portion and scores the fold lines! The leaves and acorns that adorn the top of my box were cut--and embossed--with the Big Shot machine using a Spellbinders die, and I attached my Fall collage with SU's Pop-Up Glue Dots for added dimension. Customers who purchase the Big Shot Starter Kit from me get a FREE "Big Shot 101" class where I'll show you how to use a variety of dies with the machine, in addition to the dies that come with the Starter Kit. I also provide a handy "cheat sheet" booklet (designed and created by me) that contains information on how to use the Big Shot with most manufacturers' dies . . . for cutting and embossing! I even offer a Big Shot Layaway Club! If you're beginning to think that the Big Shot is a Big Deal, then you're right! ;-)

EASY PUNCHED PUMPKINS

Check out these little guys! I don't remember ever making pumpkins from punches, but my sister said she used to make them years ago. Oh well . . . good ideas are good even if they're old, huh? For the larger pumpkin, I used SU's 1-3/8" circle punch, and I used the Wide Oval punch for the shorter pumpkin. The edges were sponged with Chocolate Chip ink, and I used Chocolate Chip card stock for the stem. For the greenery, I used SU's small Star punch on the large pumpkin, and a felt flower was used on the small pumpkin.

SIZZIX SCALLOP ENVELOPE DIE

This doesn't look much like an envelope, does it? It's actually four scallop envelopes made into a box! I was on the fence about ordering this Sizzix die until I saw a box that someone else had made with the envelopes and, since boxes are my thing, I had to have it! And let me tell you . . . this is one of the quickest boxes you could ever make! I dressed mine up with Rope Twine (Holiday mini catalog), Pewter Jumbo Eyelets, "Maine Blueberry" designer paper, and SU's star punches. I repeated the star theme on the 3x3 note cards that are in the box and just need to add one or two cards and the envelopes. If you're like me, you like versatility in the products that you purchase, and this particular die definitely has versatility! When I get a chance, I'll show you another way this die can be used on a box--and on a card, as well! Go ahead and put the "Big Shot Starter Kit" on your wish list--the scallop envelope die is included in that kit!

SNOWFLAKE ORNAMENTS

Won't these look pretty hanging on a tree? The snowflake on the left is the most sturdy of the two. I used thin cardboard that was silver embossed. The snowflake on the right is a bit more fragile since it was cut from aluminum tooling foil. The foil itself is somewhat thicker/stronger than kitchen foil, but it's still easy to bend. Wouldn't these look nice glittered???? I seem to have misplaced my Iridescent Ice embossing powder or I'd go ahead and try it. The snowflake, of course, is a Sizzix die that was used with my Big Shot die cut machine.

GOT HARDWARE?

This is one of those easy peasy gift items! I used Kiwi Kiss striped grosgrain ribbon and one of SU's brand new Vanilla Hodgepodge Hardware pieces to create this bookmark. It was designed so the stamped image will be right-side-up to rest against the cover of a book while the ribbon holds the reader's place in the book. Other SU products used for this project include the Vanilla brad, Scallop Circle punch, Designer Label punch, "Pocket Silhouettes" stamp set, Tangerine Tango and Old Olive Classic ink, and Crystal Effects.

GIFT BAG EXPERIMENT

Yesterday's paper craft "experiment" was a gift bag. It wasn't a difficult project, but it's larger than what I wanted. That's the fun thing about some projects . . . you're just not sure what you're going to end up with. I finished putting this bag together this morning and decided to try a fun flower technique. The bag needed "something" to jazz it up. I punched some scallop circles, cut them in half, rolled them into a cone shape, and adhered them to a scallop circle. I used one of SU's new designer brads for the center of the flower but not before I glittered it with Crystal Effects and Chunky Sprinkles glitter. It turned out really good--that glitter is absolutely gorgeous!! Don't study the picture too closely or you'll notice a few boo-boos in the assembly of the flower "cones." ;-)

TOO EARLY FOR CHRISTMAS?

Of course, it's not too early for Christmas! I created this card for a swap, and the quick design surprised even me! I used Always Artichoke and Very Vanilla card stock for the base. Riding Hood Red card stock was used to create the actual card, which was cut with a Spellbinders' Nestabilities rectangle die. Notice that gorgeous ribbon??? It's just as gorgeous in real life and is SO easy to work with! It's one of the "Alpine" Ribbon Originals offered by SU in the Holiday mini catalog. The other ribbon in the pack is Chocolate Chip felt, and it is so soft and fun to work with--adds a lot of warmth to cold-weather cards! Go ahead and add the Ribbon Originals to your wish list! Other SU products used to make this card include "Punches Three" (level 1 hostess set), Scallop Square punch, 1-3/8" Circle punch, and the Wide Oval punch. Take a closer look at the "Punches Three" hostess set in the catalog! It's worth hosting a workshop just to earn this set!

WHAT IS IT?

They're not too exciting to look at, but they might come in handy! They're "dimensionals." Tonight, as I was mounting a die-cut stamp set, it occurred to me to save the foam (which has adhesive on both sides) and see if it will work as well as Stampin' Dimensionals. I cut the foam into assorted sizes and placed the cuts on waxed paper. I have no idea if they'll lose their tack or get permanently stuck to the waxed paper, but time will tell. It's worth a try, right? This next picture is the leftover rubber after I removed the images and the sticky foam. I had heard that this rubber made a good template for shading stamped images, so I gave it a whirl! Pretty cool, huh? The last picture shows the shaded sentiment by itself. It could certainly mimic a layer on a card, don't you think? At any rate, these are some nifty ideas that you may want to try the next time you have a stamp set to mount. What may look like garbage could end up being useful! I'll try to remember to give an update as to how the dimensionals work out.