DogGone Delightful Stampin'

3-Way Friday ~~ 1 Design, 3 Alternatives

Hello Fellow Stampers ~

 Whooo Hooooo . . . T G I F!!!  I'm so glad this week is over!! Whew!  And the weekend is gonna be craaaaazzzzzy!!  Starting this afternoon.  Mike and I head for Florence, Colorado (a 2-1/2" hour drive) to celebrate one of his sisters' 60th Birthday - it's a surprise party!!  LOL  Should be fun; but it will be quite late tonight before we get home.  And then there's college football game tomorrow; and all sorts of things going on!!  Thank goodness we have beautiful late Fall weather going on right now!

 

Did everyone see that Starbucks released their 2018 Halloween Frappuccino drink today??

 

Toad's breath, bat warts, and lizard scales.

Mmmmmmmmmmm  -  this Witches Brew just sounds delish!!  LOL

 

 

 

We have our own Halloween fun today.  I am presenting to you the second and third installments today of my Baker's Box collection that I've been rolling out for the past week, showcasing our Cauldron Bubble suite.  I am so in love this adorable suite of products.  I have two boxes to add to the collection today - and they're just the cutest !!  A few frogs . . . and a kitty cat too!!

 

 

 

This box was spritzed with a mixture of 70% alcohol and lots of drops of Pumpkin Pie reinker - LOL

Seriously, however light or dark you want your coloring when you use a Stampin' Spritzer - the outcome totally depends on how many drops of Re-Inker you put into the mixture.  So experiment and see what you like the best.  And I actually spritzed this box twice - letting it dry inbetween.  [See Note below for tips and tricks on spritz coloring your baker's boxes.

Tip/Trick:  One of the tricks I have found with the Baker's Boxes - since they are a "shinier" surface on the outside, (not an absorbant cardstock feel) - Spray on as much of your color mixture as you would like, let it sit for just a minute or 2, and then take a piece of paper towel and start to wipe and move the color around on the surface of the box.  What I have found is if I let the color sit on the box for a few minutes, and then start to wipe it and move it around, it helps the color absorb into the paper, and I can also get some really cool "marbling" effects as well.  I smooths the color, and works it into the paper of the box better.

 

I actually created a "belly band" for this box.

Because this box is a little bit bigger than our other boxes . . .

Cut the strip 1-1/2" wide by 12" long; and a second piece 1-1/2" wide by 3" long.

Then overlap 1-3/8" and SNAIL the two pieces together.

Score at 3", 5-1/8", 9-1/2" and 11 3/4"

Then you should be able to wrap the band around the box, and SNAIL it together at the overlap in the back, and have a perfect Belly Band

Decorate from there!

 

 

 

 

This box is greeeeeeeeeeeennn!!  LOL 

We did this box for the Halloween class last Saturday - and the girls loved it!!

I adore the frog paper in the new Toil & Trouble DSP.

And this little frog stamped and colored with Granny Apple Green Stampin' Blends goes right with his background.

This box was spritzed with a mixture of 70% alcohol and Granny Apple Green Re-inker.

 

 

 

 

Here are all 3 Baker's Boxes that I'm featuring with the Cauldron Bubble products!

You can see what a cute set this creates.

Here's the link to the Gorgeous Grape box!!

 

I hope you had fun today with our 3-Way Friday design feature.  The Cauldron Bubble Suite and the new Baker's Boxes are a must have.  We've been exploring how to use these products for both cards and the gift boxes.  Fill your boxes with cookies, or a nice big fat donut!!  LOL  Either way, have lots of fun next week.  And be sure to order your Cauldron Bubble products and bundle today!!  Otherwise, you'll miss Halloween, and the Goblins will throw you in the Witches Brew!!

Hahahahahahaha . . . .

 

Until Next Time . . .

3-Way Friday ~~ 1 Design, 3 Cards

Hello Fellow Stampers ~

 Well, the best laid plans . . .  I've been feeling rather "under the weather" for awhile now, which all culminated yesterday in a root canal!  Yikes!!  So, now hopefully I'm on the mend and will start feeling my old self again soon.

 

Unfortunately, all the plans I had for this week kind of went out the window on Monday night, when I just couldn't take the pain anymore, and thus started a series of doctor/dentist appointments this week.  So, we'll skip my previously planned Thursday CASE-Out and hold it for next week.  In the meantime, I am excited to share with this set of 3 cards today.  I've been working these for about a week and a half, and am really thrilled with the results.  I hope you'll enjoy our 3-Way Friday fun today.

 

 

Our 3-Way today is 3 cards, created from one design inspiration.  Here is the design inspiration from one of my fellow pals:

 

I liked the idea of a basic background, with a vertical stripe down the center of the card, and the focal point overlaid in the front center.  So using this basic design layout, I set out to create my 3-Way inspiration, sticking to our "Fall is Calling" theme, and some of our wonderful new stamp products.  Ready??  😉

 

Two of today's cards stick to a "vertical" orientation for the card; while the third is turned to the horizontal.  In all 3 designs you'll see the same basic design layout is used, but in some fun and unique ways.

 

The other special element of today's card designs, is we are introducing the next technique for using the new shimmer paints.  We'll talk about that here in just a minute!

I also incorporated "Autumn" into each of these card designs, in a different unique way for each one.

 

We'll start with this Country Home featured card design first.

This card base is cut from Early Espresso cardstock (8-1/2" x 5-1/2", scored at 4-1/4" - side fold card), to compliment the same color in the designer series paper; this piece cut from the Country Lane DSP.  The matting is Mint Macaron which is also in the designer paper.

Next, you'll notice (hopefully) in the picture a shimmer or sheen to the designer paper.  If you've seen this paper, you know this set does not have shimmer.

We added it!!!  Mix 70% alcohol in a Stampin' Spritzer, then add as many drops of Frost White Shimmer Paint as you would like.  [I probably have a good 20 or so in my mix].  Then spray your designer paper, and keep the "curl" from the paper using your Paper Piercer.  When dry you can adhere the layers as normal.  Alcohol will cause this to dry quickly, and not cause the "damage" water would.  Before the 2 layers are adhered to the card front, I "replicated" the vertical stripe down the center of the card with a piece of 1/4" Tranquil Tide Velvet Ribbon; which when the card is finished off, is topped off with a bow!  Perfect!

 

The central focal point is stamped from the Country Home stamp set.

I stamped the images in Smoky Slate classic ink; and worked the milk can in Smoky Slate Stampin' Blends to create a sort of "no line" look to the coloring.

You'll also see Granny Apple Green, Mango Melody, and Crumb Cake Stampin' Blends in this image.

The sentiment was "fussy cut" and attached with glue dots and finished off with Faceted Dots.

Finally, you'll note that I added Shimmer Paint to the can; and little bits of real cotton to various "blooms" of the cotton stalks in the image.  Pretty cool!!  I love this effect.

Layered with an off-set Layering Oval cutout, and popped with dimensionals to the front of the card.

 

The second card is also a vertical card, cut from Cajun Craze cardstock, this time 4-1/4" x 11", scored at 5-1/2" (a top fold card).  This compliments the colors in the Nature's Poem Designer Series Paper (perfect for Fall).  Once again I spritzed the designer paper with the alcohol/shimmer paint mix for a beautiful shimmer.  Matted with Tranquil Tide cardstock, these layers were wrapped with the new Braided Linen Trim to emulate the vertical band in our card design, before being attached on the card base.  These 3 strands were actually "tied" with the complimentary bow.

 

I had a lot of fun creating the central focal point of this card.

The background leaf is cut using the new Detailed Leaves Thinlits from Cajun Craze

Then I stamped these gorgeous leave from the Rooted In Nature stamp set on Vellum using Tranquil Tide, Cajun Craze, and Mint Macaron (be sure to let the ink dry - this is Vellum!)

They are layered and attached on the leaf background using glue dots.  Then I stamped the sentiment from the Rooted In Nature stamp set using Cajun Craze ink, and then fussy cut each word so I could arrange the sentiment across the leaves just the way I wanted.

Once again, the piece is popped with dimensionals on the card front. 

The entire card is finished off with some of the brand new Clear Epoxy Droplets.

 

I think the final card might be my favorite (close tie to the second).  This is the card that turns our design on it's "side" today!

This card does not use designer series paper for the background - instead I used a brand new embossing folder that I noted at a "top pick" in My Favorite Things post this week.

This card base is cut from Gray Granite (easily my favorite new neutral color, for it's "brown-gray" coloring).

The mat cardstock color is Blackberry Bliss; and the overlay layer is Cajun Craze ~~

embossed with the new Tin Tile Dynamic TIEF - gorgeous!

Then, I sprayed the piece, once again, with my shimmer paint mix.

Finally, I used a sponge dauber and came in with Soft Suede ink to added some "distress" to my tin tile background.

Then - even more fun - I cut a Chicken Wire Element in half, and then used it as the background strip. 

Just a Note:  The Chicken Wire Elements are quite dainty (even fragile).  I laid some SNAIL in the very center of the background cardstock, and laid the Chicken Wire over it - knowing that my central focal point would cover it.  None of the rest of the piece is "adhered" to the card front.  This is easiest as it can be a little tricky to glue this beautiful foil piece down.

 

This card features the Pleasant Pheasants stamp set (also one of my "top picks").

It is stamped in Memento Tuxedo Black and "dry" colored with Watercolor Pencils (no water).

Cut and layered on a slight "diagonal" with the Layering Ovals framelits, I added a Galvanized Clip, with an 1/8" Fresh Fig Sheer Ribbon bow tied around it.

The sentiment is from Falling for Leaves, stamped in Fresh Fig, and finished off with Faceted Dots.

 

I hope you had fun today with our 3-Way Friday design feature.  It's been awhile since we've done a 3-Way Friday, and I really enjoyed designing these cards.  I'd love to know how you'd create using this basic design.  Have a great weekend everyone!!

 

Until Next Time . . .

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"All That Sparkles & Shines" - December 2017 Stampin' Pretty Pals Blog Hop

Good Morning Fellow Stampers!

And welcome to the 2nd Wednesday of the month -- our Stampin' Pretty Pals Blog Hop date.  The December 2017 Blog Hop features “All that Sparkles and Shines.”  You may just be starting the hop here with me; or you may be coming from Julie DiMatteo at The Paper Pixie.   Either way, you can continue and follow the entire hop today using the list at the end of today's blog post.  I hope you'll take the time to visit each entry.  The Pals are a fabulous and creative group; one I'm proud to be a member of.

 

I LOVE sparkly, shiny, shimmery, and lots and lots of glimmer on my projects as you well know.  So this hop is right up my alley.  Even so, I had to do some "twirling" in my studio (LOL), to try to figure out what I was going to do for today's post.  So many choices, so little time.  I finally took some inspiration from Lisa Pretto, and pulled out my Foil Frenzy Specialty Designer Series Paper and decided it was time to play.  I also got the chance to ink up a newly arrived stamp set for today's project - Watercolor Christmas.

 

I consider the Watercolor Christmas stamp set to be a little bit of a "sleeper" set.  In fact, for reasons I have not quite figured out myself, I kept overlooking this set in the Holiday Occasions catalog thinking it didn't interest me.  For some reason, I just didn't pause to really take a closer look.  And then . . . I kept seeing these fabulous sentiments on cards here and there and I kept wondering what on earth the designer was using; until one day, after flipping back and forth through the catalog like a billion times (well, okay, maybe not that many - LOL), I realized it was Watercolor Christmas I kept seeing.  I LOVE these sentiments.  I LOVE the font.  I don't have a clue why this set didn't catch my attention sooner.  So, needless to say, I got a little carried away for today's project and had just a ton of fun!!

 

This set of cards not only features the Watercolor Christmas stamp set, it also features the very shiny, sparkly and oh so glimmery Foil Frenzy SDSP.  I adore this paper too!  And it can be found in the Annual Catalog.  I realized that we had three wonderful shades of Shimmer Ribbon that went perfectly with these 3 colors/designs in the designer paper; so, hey -- this project just kept getting better and better!!  LOL   And since I made 3 designs, this qualifies for my 3-Way Fridays (3 cards, 3 ways), too!!  haha!  Two birds with one stone !!  I love it when a plan comes together!!  😄😄

 

I think of the 3 cards, this one is my favorite - just something about the green and the gold . . . I don't know.  I just love it!!  The "Oh Joy" is my favorite sentiment out of the stamp set as well.

The card base is  Garden Green; a mat of Gold Foil; and then overlay of the Lemon Lime Twist green foil dotted designer paper (what I like about this paper is the heavy Kraft cardstock which makes it so useful for so many things like gift boxes and bags for example).

The two layers are wrapped with Pear Pizzazz 3/8" Shimmer Ribbon, than adhered to the card base front.

The sentiment was stamped in Garden Green ink on Shimmery White cardstock, then embossed with the very sparkly shimmery Iridescent Ice embossing powder (very retired sadly - so thank goodness for my stash).

The sentiment was cut with an oval from the Stitched Shapes framelits; then adhered to a gold Foil Snowflake and popped with dimensionals on the front of the card.  I then created a wonderful double-bow with the ribbon, and tucked some Gold Mini Sequins in the fold of the tie.  Wonderful, yes?  All the details make this WOW card - which is simple to make.

 

This is my close second favorite of the 3 cards.  I love the cool blue with the silver.

A Pool Party cardbase, Silver Foil mat, and the chevron patterned Soft Sky foil.

These layers are wrapped at the center point with Pool Party 3/8" Shimmer Ribbon (be sure you've cut your paper in the right "direction" for the patter - this is a vertical card).

The sentiment was inked in Pool Party and embossed again in Iridescent Ice embossing powder (I think you can catch the sparkle of the letters in this picture - so pretty), and cut with the largest circle from the Stitched Shapes framelits.

Adhered to a silver Foil Snowflake and popped with dimensionals, the double bow was placed at the top of this one (with the Silver Mini Sequin trim tucked in the tie fold), making this almost like an ornament, don't you think?

 

This design features the Berry Burst stripe in the Foil Frenzy collection.

Berry Burst cardbase; Silver Foil mat; with the Berry Burst overlay (again, make sure you've cut your stripe the correct direction).

The accent of the Powder Pink 3/8" Shimmer Ribbon wrapped on these layers I think is a nice "soft" touch.

This sentiment is stamped in Berry Burst ink, embossed with Iridescent Ice embossing powder, and cut with the Oval Stitched Shapes framelits.  Attached to a silver Foil Snowflake and popped with dimensionals; the double bow is once again threaded with Silver Mini Sequin Trim.

 

All these cards fairly shimmer, sparkle, and shine . . . don't you agree?!?  LOL  I love it!  So much fun, and not a lot of work really!  You can whip these up in less than an hour.  I think these are very festive Christmas cards indeed!

 

Hope you have had fun today!!  Thank you so much for hopping with the Stampin’ Pretty Pals and for stopping in for a visit.  Please take a minute to mark your calendar for our next hop on January 10, 2018. Your next stop on today's hop is Beth McCullough at Stamping Mom (now there's a fabulous designer - I'm sure she'll have something special for you!).  Have a wonderful Hump Day everyone.  See you tomorrow for more fun!  

Until Next Time . . .

 

Blog Hop Line-up:  

 

1. Mary Fish at Stampin' Pretty
2. Becky Retzer at Just in Thyme Crafts
3. Amy Hoptay at Craft Carnivore
4. Peggy Noe at Pretty Paper Cards
5. Rae Harper Burnet at Wild West Paper Arts
6. Kim Jolley at Stampin' Artfully
7. Su Mohr at Aromas And Art
8. Jennifer Michalski at Stamping Serenity
9. Julie DiMatteo at The Paper Pixie
10. Wendy Klein at Doggone Delightful Stampin'
11. Beth McCullough at Stamping Mom
12. Lisa Ann Bernard at Queen B Creations
13. Pamela Sadler at Stampin' Pink Rose

 

 

 

3-Way Fridays (3 Cards 3 Ways) ~ Trim Your Stocking Beautifully!

Hello Fellow Stampers ~

 

Whoo Hooo!!  Friday at last!!!  And I STILL don't have all the Christmas decorating done!!  LOL --  we did however enjoy our first company Christmas dinner last night at the local Los Dos Potrillos.  It was pretty fun actually and nice to just sit down with folks you work with outside of the office setting and enjoy getting to know each other.

 

My only complaint . . . it's been bitterly cold here the past several days, with NO SNOW!!!!  Grrrrr . . . I mean if we're going to have to freeze to death anyway, it could at least spit some white stuff on us -- LOL  Sigh, hopefully soon!!

 

Time for some fun today . . . and we are NOT playing with card designs today!!  LOL  The thing I love about this bundle however, is the many uses it has; tags, something fun for on a package, and it can even hold small chocolates or a gift card and just be used as cute gift packaging.  Let's go play with the Trim You Stocking bundle today.  What an adorable set!!  And all the wonderful pieces in the die set let you really play and be creative!!

 

These adorable stockings are so much fun and everything you need to decorate them are all in the same die set ~ the cuffs, trimmings, toe and heel pads, all of it!!  Coordinated with the cut stamp set, you have a lot of options. 

 

 

This was my "elegant" stock -- white with lots of Gold, and glimmer and shimmer.  The bells are my favorite in this set I think; and don't be confused ~~ that cute little "strip" in the die set is an accent for on your bells.

The snowflake die in this set is also beautiful!!  We had so many gorgeous snowflake cut outs in all our different die sets this year . . . did you notice?!  Wonderful!

 

  

This guy is my "non-traditional" stocking made from Kraft cardstock and Lemon Lime Twist, with Champagne Foil stars.

And yes - the tag is also in the die set.  I stamped the stripes on the one side in Soft Suede (in the stamp set), and a "To . . From" on the other side.  It is attached to the stocking with a piece of Jute twine (the strands were separated apart for a rustic look).

The sentiment was stamped right on the stocking with Soft Suede ink also - and then I added the cute little seed pearls in a pattern across the stamped dots!! Cute!

 

 

Here's a closer look at the flip side of the tag; and you can see when you lift the pillow box flaps how nicely a gift card fits inside.

 

  

This is our "traditional" stocking which I created into an "ornament" - simply by keeping the top flap open, and punching a hole with the 1/8" Handheld Circle Punch, and putting some gold cording through it.

 I also added a little Clear Wink of Stella here and there to add some shimmer.  The large pearls were colored with Old Olive and Cherry Cobbler Stampin' Blends.

 

I was very sad to see that this set / bundle will not be carrying forward.  You do not want to miss this set; it is a "must have" to keep in your stash for the years ahead.  Order yours today in my Online Store before it is gone for good!! 

As always, I'm only an email away if you need anything.  And be sure to pop into my Online Store for any of the supplies you need for today's project! 

 

Until Next Time . . .

  

 

 

3-Way Fridays (3 Cards, 3 Ways) - Christmas In the Making Comes Together ~

Hello Fellow Stampers ~

 

Good Morning Everyone!  Happy Friday!!  And Happy Day After Thanksgiving - LOL   Do you all feel as stuffed as I do? What a wonderful day we had yesterday.  And there is food to feed another whole host!!  LOL  I love it!!  So much fun!! 

And I have confession to make; we were combing the Black Friday sale ads yesterday, and I broke down and actually went to Target at 6:00 last night to buy a $30 Christmas tree -- O M G!!  I have always sworn I would not participate in the Thanksgiving Day sales because I just don't think it's right!  I broke my own promise - eeeek!  It was a deal too good to pass up and I was looking for a new tree - so the price was definitely right!  We got there about 10 minutes after the doors opened, and the parking lot was totally and complete packed full -- I mean, entirely, every single space, out to the bank parking next door, and the mall parking beyond!!  Nuts!!  People are nuts!!  LOL  Anyway -- I was very impressed with how organized everything was.  We found the tree, and beat feet and were really only in the store about 15 minutes.  Pretty impressive!!  Target definitely had their act together!!

 

So now it's time to take down the Fall decorations; and start pulling out Christmas.  And with a new tree to decorate (pre-lit no less!!), it should be fun!

 

It's time for our final installment in the Christmas In the Making 3-Way Friday series.  Today we bring the 3 cards together.  And I have to say, this really a special collection of cards.  I had them lying on the table yesterday while I was working on the third one, and the gals were just in awe, ooooiing, and ahhing over them.  I have to agree.  I really love this stamp set, and this set of cards!!  And the Stampin' Blends make it so easy to create this incredible effect.

 

 

 

Colorology 

Whisper White

Cherry Cobbler

Daffodil Delight

 

This final stamped image I saved for very last for a reason.  I feels like the "pièce de résistance" to me.  As with the previous two images, this image just invokes nostalgia, and the "dreaming of a white Christmas" feelings that come with the holiday for me.  And really, who doesn't run to the mailbox throughout December to see what wonderful Christmas cards and letters will be in the mail that day!  It seems like the one time each year that we take the time to reach out to friends and family far and wide; and I know I look forward to hearing from everyone!

 

 

Doggone Delightful Stampin' Design Tips
When folded this card measures 4-1/4″ wide by 5-1/2″ tall.

 

This design completes the color trilogy that I played with, keeping the theme color all the way through - Daffodil Delight.  You'll note in the first card it was Daffodil Delight and Pool Party; the second card was Daffodil Delight and Old Olive; and now we have Daffodil Delight and Cherry Cobbler.  I have to say that in each case, I have been surprised how prettily Daffodil Delight seems the perfect accent and just works so well with each color scheme.  I think it especially pops with the Cherry Cobbler and I love it!

 

Once again I enjoyed myself greatly with my Stampin' Blends.  It is so much fun to "color" with these markers.  The dress is in Daffodil Delight, accented with Cherry Cobbler at the sash, and in my fashionista's accessories.  The mailbox was done up in Smoky Slate of course, with the post in a mixture of Crumb Cake and Bronze.  Old Olive for the holly, and Cherry Cobbler on the bows; Pool Party for my little bluebird.  What's particularly fun about this card, is the carefully added embossing paste on my gal's fur cuffs, collar, hat tassle, and boot cuffs.  I used Dazzling Diamonds Glitter over my shading on the snow on the ground - love that glisten.  How fun is this!!  I love all the wonderful accessories available to us to create pretty cards with lots of details.  Clear Wink of Stella was added to all the right places once again - the mailbox, bows, purse, boots, and just a smear across the upper part of her skirt to give a little shimmer.

 

 

Finished off with Cherry Cobber Cross-Stitched Ribbon, and the requisite pearls, this cards falls right into place and ties the collection together.  Here's a tip -- I got an extra deep lustre and look to my pearls this time by first coloring them with Dark Rich Razzleberry; then after they were dry, adding another layer of Dark Cherry Cobbler -- they are just gorgeous!!  Work carefully with your Light Smoky Slate and your Color Lifter to add the proper shading around your images.  It can be a little tricky; but if you work carefully and patiently (one area at a time), you should get the right effect that adds just the right amount of dimension.

 

 

Here's our three cards together today.

 

        

And each one side by side by side.

 

I hope you have enjoyed this 3-Way Friday series that we've been doing, and that you feel like you maybe even learned a little bit.  I hope you will snap up this adorable stamp set, and your Stampin' Blends set, and give it a whirl!!  In a few short weeks (hard to believe) our beautiful Holiday Occasions catalog will be winding down, and soon this stamp set will be gone.  So get yours today!!

 

Now, I'm off to the real Black Friday sales -- actually probably just my annual run to Home Depot at 6 am, to get my .99 cent Poinsettias.  I do it every year!!  LOL

As always, I'm only an email away if you need anything.  And be sure to pop into my Online Store for any of the supplies you need for today's project! 

 

Until Next Time . . .

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As always, I'm only an email away if you need anything.  And be sure to pop into my Online Store for any of the supplies you need for today's project! 

 

Until Next Time . . .