Sunday, 24 August 2014

Be the Star and Birthday Surprise by Stampin' Up! for a Guy with Top Tips too!

Hi there,
Todays card is another one for a guy this time using Be the Star and Birthday Surprise, both great for men's cards. I cut extra card kits for class the other week so I could make some extra cards for myself keeping the colours (obviously) but changed up the stamps from THIS card, what do you think?
 the fab birthday Surprise sentiment in Lost Lagoon (not Blue Lagoon, as I keep wanting to call it ;-))
 I stamped these stars and die cut them out using the matching Star Framelits, 
Like the cute twine loops behind? scroll down for my top tip on securing this
 TOP TIP 1: Now, I know there are plenty of great ways to do this, glue dots work really well- but well, I was in the kitchen and what can I say, couldn't be bothered to go fetch them! Sooo, I simply stapled this twine to my card layer. It's very secure this way as a bonus, no chance of it unsticking ;-)
TOP TIP 2: I always make my front layers of my card first then add the finished panel to my card base after it's completed, then there are no staples/brad backs/ribbon ends etc. to see inside your card
and the card again to finish today...
I hope you liked todays card and tips,
back soon with more!
Stampin' hugs,
Products Used to create this project:
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Saturday, 23 August 2014

Think Happy with a Stamp-a-Ma-Jig Tutorial

Hi There,
I shared THIS CARD with you a couple of weeks back and have got a tutorial to share to get the most from your Think Happy stamp set and your Stamp-a-ma-Jig too! 
I was thinking this might help some of the newer stampers out there in blogland or those who haven't used the SAMJ for a while. My class ladies found it useful so I wanted to share it here with you but I don't want you to think I'm trying to teach anyone how to "suck eggs" IYKWIM. If you already know how to SAMJ then please skip past this post for a card or two instead ;-)
Here I have used Lost lagoon for the outline and Soft Sky for the inner swirls.
Now, some of my ladies at class stamped the inner, swirly section of the cloud first then the outside line with the SAMJ (stamp-a-ma-jig). when we did it this way round we found that there was a much higher likelihood of pressing too hard and getting ink from the centre of the cloud  onto the image from the stamp...
So, lets start with the cloud outline
there is a top and bottom to this cloud so, as I have said before (HERE), for this set I have marked the back of the stamp with a line at the bottom (ground) and an arrow pointing up (for the top) 
*Note: If using wood mount I would also mark the wooden block with a top and bottom to the image*
 Even with light tap, tap you get a lot of ink but press and lift and it will stamp your outline image perfectly. 
I used Lost Lagoon for this part.
 Now, ink up your swirly middle with Lost Lagoon ink. Yep, not Soft Sky yet as it's just too pale to see when you need line it up in a mo!
 Position the window sheet in the corner of the handle, lock the block into the corner, slide down to stamp and slide back up
 Now clean your stamp! 
Top Tip: Put your Lost Lagoon ink pad away now, then you won't ink your stamp with the wrong colour!
 get your Soft Sky pad open and ink your stamp, rest it on there while you do the next part if it's easier.
Note: I have also marked the top and bottom of this stamp to make life that bit easier!
 Line up the swirly image on the window sheet with the cloud outline like so
 place your SAMJ handle up to the edges of the sheet, careful not to move the sheet or place the handle on top of it either ;-)
 Remove the sheet
 Remember light Tap, Tap to ink, that's all you need on the new ink pads.
 Plus double check your stamp is the right way up now too!
 OK, this would be easier with an extra hand, remember one of mine is taking the pic but...
Lock in the block to the corner of the handle
 Slide down and press, slide back up the handle. Don't be tempted to pull it away sideways as this smudges the image.
(this is why it's better to stamp the outline first then infill with the swirls, too much pressure on the outline stamp at this point made a mess of the image several times!)
 and Voilà! Perfectly stamped clouds!
 All three on this card are done!
OK, I'm sure plenty of you already know this but I hope this has helped some of the newer stampers out there?
Thanks for looking today,
Stampin' Hugs,
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Thursday, 21 August 2014

Birthday card for my Sister using a FREE stamp set - Hello Love by Stampin' Up! and Blendabilities too ;-)

Hi there,
This card is one I made recently for my sisters birthday using the Hostess only set "Hello Love". 
There are lots of stamps in this set (12 actually, see page 239 in the catty) but I really love this little bird, she's so sweet! 
I used a colour combo of Pink Pirouette and Coastal Cabana to make this card
 I stamped the birds using Momento Ink and coloured with the new Blendabilities.
Once coloured we punched them out with circle punches (all links at end of post) 
 Every time I read this sentiment I sing the Will-i-am song "It's my birthday"!! 
Go ahead, I know you want to!!!
 Sparkly Glimmer paper scalloped layer under each bird, on a side note have you seen the new Accessory Index at the back of the catty? It's fab for finding bits through the catalogue such as Glimmer Paper, see page 248 for more info on this...
See here I stamped the sun from the set on the pink layer using versamark for this subtle effect you can see in the background and some sequins to finish, loving the sequins ;-)
Right, that's me for today, hope you have enjoyed!
Stampin' hugs,
Products Used to create this project:
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