Month: July 2019

stamp review crew: sailing home

Hello friends! Welcome to another Stamp Review Crew blog hop. What is the Stamp Review Crew? We are an international group of paper crafters that get together to feature and review a single Stampin’ Up! stamp set on the first and third Monday of each month. All of our previous stamp set reviews are archived on the Stamp Review Crew blog. I get the honor of starting off the blog roll today.

For this hop, we are giving the Sailing Home stamp set its moment center stage. This stamp set isn’t one I normally would gravitate towards. But, I am SO glad I got it and the full Come Sail Away product suite. I have had so much fun creating with it.

This first card is one I made for a custom order. I was asked to make a sympathy card. A boat sailing into the sunset is what was requested. Here is what I created.

I created the sunset by sponging ink onto a Whisper White panel. I used Crushed Curry, Pumpkin Pie, Terracotta Tile, Balmy Blue and Night of Navy. I used some of the retired Wood Grains DSP and distressed the edges. The sentiment is from the retired Teeny Tiny Wishes. The boat was colored with water color pencils. Here is a closer look at the corner:

My second project today uses the card fold i learned from Ronda Wade and first showed on the Stamp Review Crew’s Bird Ballad blog hop. You can see that project HERE. I liked the fold so much so I kept playing with it.

I really like the Crackle Paint background stamp with the rope pattern Come Sail Away DSP. Here is the first open:

And full open:

I used the stitched label that was cut out from the front of the card as a layer for the sentiment. This card fold is such a great way to showcase gorgeous designer series papers!

Are you ready for more amazing inspiration with the Sailing Home set? I’m sending you over to the talented Ann, just click on the NEXT button below. If you like you can go back to the amazing Nikki by clicking on the PREVIOUS button. Which ever way you travel be sure to hit all of the stops along the way. So much creativity and inspiration awaits!

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check you out 2

I’m back today with another card with the Check You Out stamp set. I love this stamp set. It is so much fun! This card is one I designed for a recent card swap with other Stampin’ Up! demonstrators.

That little worm is so stinkin’ cute! Look at him and his little bow tie. Such a dapper little guy. This was a fun card to design. The colors play off of the cheerful smile the little worm is giving. I like how the layered circles off set the edges of the stack of books. Colors are Pool Party, Melon Mambo, Granny Apple Green, Daffodil Delight and Crumb Cake.

The card I made to swap had a couple of minor changes. I used a scalloped circle punch instead of the scalloped die for the Daffodil Delight circle. The punch was just a little bigger. I also left off the rhinestones.

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born to shine

Hello! Today’s project features another NEW stamp set in the 2019-20 Stampin’ Up! catalog: Born to Shine. Both of my daughters are dancers, so this was a must have set for me. Yes, I said they ARE dancers. Yes, they are both grown, and no longer taking dance lessons or competing on the high school team, but it is truly a part of who they are. It is not something that is ever gone. It helped them develop grace, poise and confidence. I have so many great memories over their many years of dance. And yes, I miss watching them perform.

I absolutely love the saying “Dancing is like dreaming with your feet.” I’m so glad it is in this new stamp set!

I started with a Smoky Slate card base. I lightly dragged my Whisper White ink pad across it to give it a little distressed look. Behind the main panel is a bit of Highland Heather script print DSP. The top panel is the NEW In Color Purple Posy. I stamped the dancer with Highland Heather ink and the stars with Purple Posy, spattered some Smoky Slate ink and distressed the edges. The dancer’s dress is colored with Wink of Stella, but it doesn’t show up well in the photo. The sentiment is stamped in Whisper White ink on Basic Gray card stock and punched out with the Pretty Label punch. It reminds me of a cloud. Finishing touches are a bit of white flax ribbon and a few rhinestones.

This card brought back a flood of memories. I may need to go watch some of their old dance videos. Thanks for stopping by. Join me again to shine a spotlight on creativity!

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very versaille

Wow, it is already the middle of July. Why does it seem like time is passing by faster and faster? Is this the perception as you get older? It would be nice if things would slow down a bit.

I have had a lot of creative time in my studio working with products from the NEW Stampin’ Up! catalog. I have some fun projects waiting to share with you!

I recently participated in a few card swaps with other demonstrators. I love to trade ideas! It is so much fun to see everyone’s creativity and get ideas for stamp sets I may not own.

This is one of the cards I designed to swap –

It features the new stamp set Very Versaille. I absolutely LOVE the script stamp! Colors are: Sahara Sand, Whisper White, Pool Party, Pear Pizzazz and Early Espresso. The torn edges are a bit of vellum. It gives added texture and softens the background color. I often overlook vellum. It really has a lot of versatility.

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stamp review crew: good morning magnolia

Welcome to another Stamp Review Crew blog hop! Today we are featuring the Good Morning Magnolia stamp set. This gorgeous set is part of the Magnolia Lane Suite of coordinating products, but is also very versatile on its own.

I wanted to branch out from the product suite and play with some other colors. Blue and orange are complimentary colors on the color wheel, so I paired Pool Party and the new In Color Terracotta Tile. I threw in some Basic Gray for balance.

The Pool Party card base is embossed with the new Brick and Mortar 3D Embossing Folder. The texture and detail this folder creates is amazing. The photo really doesn’t do it justice. The welcome is one of the Well Written Dies. Some Terracotta Tile spatters keep the image panel from feeling too flat. Isn’t that large magnolia stamp GORGEOUS! It inspired me to step up the inside of the card as well.


I used the smaller blossom image, some ink spatters and DSP strips. A few details on the inside really step up the card.

I really liked this color scheme, so I stuck with it for my second card.

This time I used the Magnolia 3D embossing folder. The Hello was cut out with one of the Stitched Rectangle dies. It was longer than the sentiment so I shortened it. Just line up the stitches and run it through your die cutting machine again.

Of course, I had to decorate the inside of this card as well.

When embellishing the inside of the card, use some elements from the card front. For this card it was the Designer Series Paper peeking out from the torn corner. On the first card it was the ink spatters and DSP strips.

Now continue the blog hop by clicking on the NEXT button below and check head over to see the great project Heidi has to share. Or you can click the PREVIOUS button and go back to Ann’s fantastic creations. Either way, you will want to continue through the hop to see the rest of the great projects the Stamp Review Crew has waiting!

Thanks for stopping by. Join me again to shine a spotlight on creativity!

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osat blog hop: down on the farm

Thanks for stopping by! Today is the monthly One Stamp At A Time blog hop. Our theme is Down On The Farm. Be sure to take the full tour to see all of the great interpretations on this theme. I decided to take a farmhouse chic approach to my project.

I recently created a home decor piece and used it as inspiration for today’s projects. Here is my decor piece:

Here is my interpretation of this in card form:

I used the Basic Gray gingham print from the Neutrals 6″x6″ DSP stack. The sentiment is from Dandelion Wishes stamp set. The Sprigs are punched out of Granny Apple Green card stock and tied with Linen Thread. I also created a smaller decor piece.

This is a small monogramed 4″x4″ canvas. I used the same gingham dsp and sprig punch. I cut out three “h”s with the Hand Lettered Prose dies and layered them for depth.

Inspiration is all around. See what ideas you can find from decor pieces and let your creativity run!

Now, go check out the great projects the rest of the OSAT Design Team has waiting for you! Please click on the blue box below for a pop up list of the full design team.

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daisy smile

Hello, friends! Thanks for joining me today. I can’t believe it is the second week of July already! Summer is just flying by. It has been nice to finally have some warm weather. I love seeing the trees fully leafed out, green lawns, and beautiful flowers. My daisies haven’t bloomed yet, though. They are my favorites. At least I can create my own on paper with the Daisy Lane set!

Water color washes are one of my favorite background techniques. They are so easy and no two are exactly the same. I started with a Coastal Cabana wash on water color paper for today’s card.

I stamped the small daisy all over the card base and added a strip of Daffodil Delight gingham pattern from the Brights 6″x6″ Designer Series Paper stack. The leaves are stamped in Shaded Spruce. I pulled the color out with my aquapainter. Daisy is stamped in Daffodil Delight and punched out with the Medium Daisy punch. I layered two for more depth and added one of the Perennial Essence Flower Centers. They are so much fun and add such great texture. I wrapped some linen thread to help ground the flower.

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God bless America

I am very thankful for the freedom we have in America and grateful for those who have served and sacrificed to protect that freedom.

Happy 4th of July!

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