I'm supposed to be working on my "easy to reproduce holiday cards" swap, but I can't seem to come up with anything that is "easy to reproduce"! The whole point of the swap is that people will be able to create the cards in as few steps as possible so they can make huge amounts of them for Christmas.
In any case, here is one of my creations for today. I saw a wreath sticker in a magazine and thought that I could re-create that same look using the flower punch. It's easy to make this card, but it is time consuming putting the wreath together. Can you tell that the wreath is hanging on a door?

Card Candy

Here is a look at some card candy I put together. Essentially you make focal points, tags and/or framed images and put dimensionals on the back of them. You then stick the little pieces onto some wax paper and save them for future use. When you need a quick card, all you have to do is take the "candy" off the wax paper and stick it on a folded card. You could decorate the card further if you wanted to. The images could also be used as an accent on a scrapbook page. Click on the image to see a larger view.

Just 2 More Cards for August 17

I love this witch from the Booglie Eyes set. As a matter of fact, I just love the whole set. The characters are cute, not scary or weird looking.











I have been playing a lot with designer paper. I was inspired by Ali Edward's book "Designing with Patterned Paper." I always thought I needed to be "matchy-matchy" when it came to putting patterned paper together, but that's not necessarily the case. I am now buying patterned paper that I love and just experimenting with it. In this card, I think the designs match because the colors and scale of patterns are similiar. Not one pattern overwhelms the other and I tried to keep the focal point on the circle greeting.

Cracked Glass

I love the look of the cracked glass technique. It really adds a vintage feel to any image. This technique is so easy. You stamp and color your image as usual. Then versamark your entire piece. Really, really versamark it! Sprinkle Ultra Thick Embossing Enamel (otherwise known as UTEE) and heat with your heat gun. The first layer will be bubbly. While hot and sticky, immediately sprinkle another layer of UTEE and heat. You will need to do this about 3-4 times to get a smooth finish. Helpful tools for this technique include tweezers so you don't burn yourself and a powder pal tray so you can work quickly and not worry about making a mess.

My Splitcoast Gallery

I posted my very first card to Splitcoast Stampers last night! I was hesitant about doing this because some of the work on that site is so beautifully crafted. But I took a chance and now have my own gallery on that site. I will try to post a direct link in my links section below.

Non-Traditional Tree

A customer called me last night looking for cameo coral paper. She wants to do a non-traditional holiday card. This morning I put this card together. It's the exact same layout as the fir tree below in my other post. This demonstrates perfectly how you can use the same layout and simply change stamps and colors.
Stamp Sets: Nice & Narrow, Itty Bitty Backgrounds
Paper: Cameo Coral, Chocolate Chip, Certainly Celery, Very Vanilla
Ink: Cameo Coral, Chocolate Chip
Markers: Cameo Coral, Certainly Celery, YoYo Yellow
Accessories: Certainly Celery Grosgrain Ribbon

Hot Chocolate Holder

This hot chocolate holder has been a real hit! If you would like directions on how to make it, please email me privately.
Stamp Set: It's Snow Time
Paper: Kraft, Naturals Ivory, Brocade Blue, Sage Shadow
Ink: White Craft, Basic Black
Accessories: Bluebird Grosgrain Ribbon
Other: I used blender pens to color the image. You could also use markers or pencils. I used Liquid Applique for the snow. Just apply it to your image, let it stand overnight, then use your heat gun to make it poof. You'll also need hot chocolate packets. This was designed to fit Swiss Miss brand (any flavor).

My Links

I just want to take a moment to explain my links listed to the right of your screen. Of course I listed Stampin' Up because that's my company. Their site has ideas and directions for many of their products. If you did not receive the quarterly mini-catalog, you can access that right online. They also have a section of frequently asked questions if you are curious about certain products or why you have to cut the stamps out yourself. I love Stampin' Up as a company. They truly are very caring and really take care of us as demonstrators.

SplitcoastStampers is one of my favorite sites to visit. They have thousands and thousands of ideas in their gallery. Probably 90% of the artwork shown is created with Stampin' Up products. You can type in a stamp set name and all of the projects made with that set will pop up. Or you can type in a technique you want to try, such as embossing, and all embossed projects will pop up. They have a wonderful techniques section under "resources". The directions are very clear and the photographs help you each step of the way. Because of this site's popularity, their server is overwhelmed and it can take a while for the pages to download. In addition, the site is undergoing some changes and may start charging a $25 annual membership fee if you want more access to the various galleries and resource pages. Frankly I think it's worth every penny to join.

Ink Blots is a blog written by Nicole Seitler, a fellow Stampin' Up demonstrator. Her artwork is exquisite. She goes into great detail about certain techniques and you can definitely follow along and do these techniques at home. You can also access her personal gallery to see more of her work. Definitely worth a visit!

There are hundreds of rubberstamping websites out there, but these are my personal top three choices. One thing about stampers is that they are open to sharing so if you see an idea that you like and want to copy it, feel free! It's called CASEing (Copy And Share Everything). However, be sure to give credit where credit is due such as making sure you acknowledge copyrighted images.

If you have a rubberstamping site that you like to visit, please share it in the comments section below.

Booklet for a Friend

I made this little booklet for my friend Julie who is always lending out stamps from her vast collection. I even borrow stamps from her! I have never decorated a book before. Taking the spiral binding off is helpful in terms of decorating, but getting it back on can be a challenge! I do love the look of all of the ribbons. When I read stamping magazines and go online, this seems to be the latest trend.
Stamp Sets: Shapes and Shadows, Rough Edges Alphabets, It's a Date, Everyday Flexible Phrases
Paper: Pretty in Pink, Certainly Celery, Close to Cocoa, Designer Series Paper-Tickles
Ink: Basic Brown, Certainly Celery, Pretty in Pink
Accessories: Hodgepodge Hardware, Pink Grosgrain, Chocolate Grosgrain, Celery Grosgrain, Rose Grosgrain, Pink Gingham, Caramel Gingham, Subtle Fancy Fibers, Booklet purchased at AC Moore

A Sentimental Value Card

This is a picture of the very first card I made using Stampin' Up products. I was hooked from this point on. Beth, the woman who demonstrated this card at her workshop, is now my "upline"...and my friend too. Thanks Beth! The colors are off from the scan. It is softer looking in person.
Stamp Sets: I do not know what set the butterflies are from, but it's definitely a retired set. "Many thanks" is from All Year Cheer.
Paper: Barely Banana, Very Vanilla
Ink: Taffy Spectrum Pad (retired)
Accessories: 3/8" blue organdy ribbon (retired)