Hello Life Décor Kit

Even as a demonstrator I just love all of the kits that are offered in the Occasions catalogue!  Maybe it’s just the busy mom part of me, maybe it’s the fact that I can make something cute with just a little work and all the supplies are ready for you.  I don’t know whatever it is, I’m hooked!

I actually started on this kit probably before Christmas….and then I got busy…and it got buried.   Needless to say, since our land here is buried in a good foot of snow, I thought it was a perfect time to just go on and dig this project out and finish it.  Well, almost….I still need to print a few current pictures out so I have picture of us in the frames!

These are the frames where our pictures will go – we only need 3.  Sad that I don’t have any printed from the last 2 years, huh!?  I’ve been a little behind on my scrapbooking I believe! 

So…the other great thing about using kits is that you can take the ideas given and customize them to fit your needs.  I decided this might look good in our kitchen.  Our kitchen is yellow with a birdhouse theme.  While this is not a birdhouse them or the same color of yellow, I thought it would fit well!  I used the aquamarine chalk ink to stamp all of my images.  One of the birdhouses in the border is the same shade of aquamarine, so I thought that was a pretty good color to use. 

TIP:  When using the chalk ink on the chalkboard paper purchase the re-inker to go with it!  Go on and add ink immediately to the aquamarine pad – lots of it!  For whatever reason, the aquamarine ink color doesn’t really show up on the chalkboard paper at first.   Adding clear embossing powder and embossing it just makes it worse!  (Ask me how I know!)  Make the pad as juicy as possible and slather the ink on like crazy and then stamp.  It will eventually stand out from the chalkboard paper! 

Also, when you have stamped your image you can set it out to dry or you can set the image much more quickly with your heat tool. 

Hope you enjoyed the tips and the projects!  I’m pretty pleased with the project overall.  If I wanted to change something, I would likely change the pom pom material.  Mine just weren’t as pretty as the picture! 

I’ll pull out another project to show you soon!

Stamps:  Hello Life

Ink:  Memento Black, Aquamarine chalk ink

Accessories:  Hello Life Project Kit (I only added adhesives – Tombow glue and Sticky Strips)

Big Day birthday card

I made this for a sketch challenge this week.  I tried stamping the main image with the aquamarine chalk ink on the black chalkboard paper.  I am going to have to keep working on this chalkboard technique! 

I colored the birthday cake image with Bermuda Bay and Calypso Coral Blendabilities.  I accented the shadow with Smoky Slate and the candle with Daffodil Delight.  When I was finished, I accented the images with Dazzling Diamonds. 

Stamps:  Big Day

Ink:  Aquamarine Chalk Ink, Memento, Blendabilities

Paper:  Calypso Coral, Whisper White, Chalkboard Paper, Maritime DSP

Accessories:  Dazzling Diamonds

Lotus Blossom

I took the dimensions for this card from Aly Schilling at Project Downloads on Demand.  I just adored this card and its simplicity.  Really, I adore the stamp set for this same reason!

This is a Sale-a-bration stamp set, so it is an exclusive stamp set you can only get when you spend $50 at Stampin’ Up.   The stamp set is photopolymer and the lotus blossom image has 3 stamps.  Each stamp is numbered with an arrow to help you know which direction you’re stamping as well as which layer you are on. 

I start with the darkest color and work my way to the lightest color when I use this stamp.  I’ll see if I can find some more cards to show you later this week with this stamp set!

Stamps:  Lotus Blossom

Ink:  Crisp Cantaloupe, Calypso Coral, Blushing Bride

Paper:  Whisper White, Calypso Coral, Old Olive, Stacked with Love DSP

Accessories:  Pennant Punch, Basic Pearls

Valentines

Well….I haven’t fallen off the face of the Earth….I’m just a mom of two kiddos and I have to conquer much before I can play with my stamps and blogs!  Needless to say, I have made plenty in the past several months…I just haven’t shared it with you.  Not that you missed me!   

Here are the two valentines I created for my hubs for Valentine’s Day.

For this first card I used the Groovy Kind of Love stamp set and the heart punch.  Most of the placement was easy – just making the zebra striped heart have a 3-dimensional effect took 3 hearts – not two.  You stamp each of the 3 hearts and punch them out, fold each in half down the center of the heart and glue half of the heart to the next heart.  Once you have all 3 hearts glued together, then you can put it on the card.

Stamps:  Groovy Kind of Love

Ink:  Real Red, Memento Black

Paper:  Calypso Coral, Whisper White, Stacked with Love DSP

Accessories:  Heart Punch

And, of course, you always need a nice manly card for him!  I wish they had made additional sentiments for this little stamp set – I think it is a great stamp set for male birthdays, etc.

This card is pretty straight forward.  I did stamp the trees before embossing.  I colored the rest of the image directly with my Stampin’ Write markers. 

Stamps:  Wood You Be Mine?

Ink:  Memento Black, Real Red, Blushing Bride, Blush Blossom, Soft Suede, Old Olive, Mossy Meadow, Smoky Slate, Basic Grey (markers)

Paper:  Crumb Cake, Whisper White

Accessories:  Woodgrain embossing folder, Texture Boutique, Burlap Ribbon

Frightful Wreath

It’s funny…..I’m not much on decorating for Halloween.  Sure – I put up a few pumpkins and things that I’ve made over the years, but I usually just stick to traditional fall items.  This year, though, the items in the Holiday Catalogue are simply so amazing I think I am going to have to take out a loan so I can buy them all!!!! 

Take, for instance, this Frightful Wreath.  Any other year I would not buy a wreath for Halloween.  I’ve never had a Halloween wreath!  My two year old son, though, has played this little game with pretend spiders leftover from last year’s Halloween all summer.  We throw them out of a drawer…onto the floor….into the bath…you name it – he runs around screaming like he’s just seen a ghost.  “Piders!”  he screams with a look of terror on his face.

To anyone who doesn’t know him, they think he is truly petrified.  They feel sorry for him.  Poor little thing.  And then he does it over….and over…..and over……and over…..and over….

You get the point.  This has been his favorite little game all summer.  Needless to say, when he cried out, “Piders!” upon looking at this wreath in the catalogue…..he had me – hook, line, and sinker!

 

 

This wreath was pretty easy to make.  Here are a few tips.

*Get your hot glue gun ready and keep lots of glue sticks at your side.

*When you hot glue the center of the accordion fold – put lots of glue in there and hold it.  Then hold it some more.  Keep holding.  Take a nap and hold it!  Just kidding!

*Re-ink your Basic Black ink pad just before you sponge those doilies and be very gentle.  They tear easily.  Fresh ink will make certain that they turn really black.

*In light of the last tip…..keep paper towels or napkins close by to hold those doilies if you don’t let them dry completely. 

*The spider took the longest to make – it is not hard – just tedious!  Good wire cutters and pliers/tweezers for wire will be very helpful!

Supplies:  Frightful Wreath Simply Created kit, Frightful Wreath photopolymer stamps, Tangelo Twist ink, Basic Black ink

Calling all Superheroes to the City!

I saw the idea for this card on another demo’s blog and couldn’t resist it!  I loved how she took a boy superhero stamp set and turned it into something elegant!

I started with a Daffodil Delight background (any yellow color will work for this, though).  I sponged Crisp Cantaloupe on the bottom and Calypso Coral on the top.  I stamped the cityscene on the bottom twice.  Make sure that you get the city scene all inked up nice and juicy!

I finished with the sentiment from Let Your Hair Down and a piece of Crushed Curry chevron ribbon across the center.  It really was that easy!

Stamps:  Calling All Superheroes, Let Your Hair Down

Ink:  Crisp Cantaloupe, Calypso Coral, Memento Black ink

Paper:  Daffodil Delight, Crumb Cake

Accessories:  Crushed Curry chevron Ribbon

Work of Art plaid

I love the the Work of Art stamp set is so versatile!  We used it during our last club meeting to create our own plaid patterns.   We also played with Burlap Ribbon and found that our scallop edgelit is a great tool to cut ribbon!  (I just can’t use it very long…..I am terribly allergic to burlap!!!  Hello sneezes!)

Stamps:  Work of Art, Let Your Hair Down

Ink:  Melon Mambo, Daffodil Delight, Tempting Turquoise

Paper:  Tempting Turquoise, Whisper White, Daffodil Delight, Sweet Taffy DSP

Accessories:  Burlap Ribbon, Scallop Edgelit, Tag Topper Punch, Melon Mambo 1/8” ribbon, 1 3/8” circle punch, word window punch