DogGone Delightful Stampin': Birthday / Celebration

Birthday / Celebration

Aug 14, 2019

"Special Occasions" ~ August 2019 Stampin' Pretty Pals Blog Hop

Good Morning Fellow Stampers ~

Whooo Hooooo!! Time to celebrate the 2nd Wednesday of the month with the Stampin' Pretty Pals!! This month we're celebrating "Special Occasions" with cards or projects that will celebrate any special occasion in style - birthdays, anniversaries, weddings, babies - the list goes on!! You may be starting the hop here or coming you may be coming from Denise Hoepfner at The Mountain Magpie. Either way, you’ve come to the right place. When you're done perusing today's project, you’ll find the the full line-up below to help you move or “hop” along your way from Pal-to-Pal.

I love to do something "special" (see what I did there?!? - LOL) when it comes to the Pals Blog Hop each month; and so today I jumped on a new "fun fold" that I saw this Summer online that I just had to give a try. It's called an "Arrow Fold" ~ and it really is simpler than it looks! A wonderful UK crafter showcased this new fold a while back; and while she is not a Stampin' Up! demonstrator, she does have a wonderful cardmaking aesthetic.

Sticking with my "sunflower" theme I've kicked off for August, we're going to use the wonderful "daisy design" paper from the new Pressed Petals Specialty Designer Series Paper collection, and "pretend" they are bright sunshiney sunflowers -- LOL; and create a wonderful birthday card today!!

The trick to the "Arrow Fold" is all in the diagonal scoring on the top fold of the regular card base (this is a Whisper White card base cut as we normally would - 8-1/2" x 5-1/2", scored at 4-1/4"). My hope (no promises) is to do a "Class With Wendy" tutorial video on this card soon - so stay tuned 😉

When the flap is opened on this fun card, this is what it looks like!

Now you can see the "arrow" formation of the card really well!

Closer up you can see the sweet sentiment I picked from the Special Celebrations stamp set.

The best part of this card is the showcase of a new set in the Annual Catalog - the Daisy Lane stamp set; and the brand new coordinated punch - the Medium Daisy Punch. What I love is being able to use both our regular Daisy Punch and the new punch together like this.

This is where the detail comes into play!

I stamped the larger daisy image from the new stamp set in Crushed Curry on Crushed Curry cardstock - twice.

Then the same with the smaller daisy image - this time in Daffodil Delight ink on Daffodil Delight cardstock - 4x so I could make 2 stacked flowers.
Because when you stack the two together, you get this nice full look to your flower.

The petals on all the flowers were carefully curved with a bone folder, and lightly sponged on the tips with Crumb Cake ink using a sponge dauber.

I stacked the sets together using glue dots; then popped them on the card front with dimensionals. The larger flower as double dimensionals stacked together to give it more lift.

The centers are really fun!! Using an Early Espresso and a Mango Melody stampin' write marker, I colored our new Perennial Essence Floral Centers to give some extra pizzazz and texture to each flower! This is like so perfect!!

Finally, I used our Leaf Punch to punch Old Olive and Vellum leaves, and tucked them in place using glue dots.

The sentiment was stamped in Blueberry Bushel ink (from the Itty Bitty Birthdays stamp set), and cut with a wonderful banner found in the Lakeside Framelits.

And I finished the whole thing off with a cute little Mossy Meadow Linen bow (attached with a glue dot), and those brand new (not yet released), Holiday Rhinestone Basic Jewels ~ oh my, I can tell already these are going to be a top favorite of mine all this coming season!!

I hope you had fun with me today!! More inspiration awaits! Use the Blog Hop Line-up below to visit the rest of this month’s Design Team. My fellow Pals are excited to show you what they’ve created! Don’t forget to show us some love by commenting on our creations. Mark your calendars for Wednesday, September 11, 2019 when our Hoppin’ Pals share their “It's the Sentiment that Counts” projects. Don’t miss the fun!

Until Next Time . . . Puppy Hugs,

Pals Blog Hop Line-Up

Posted on Aug 14, 2019 at 03:30 AM in Birthday / Celebration, Stampin' Pretty Pals / Blog Hop | Permalink | Comments (9)

Feb 26, 2019

Mix-It Up Mondays ~~ Sweetest Treat Cups!

Hello Fellow Stampers ~

What a busy weekend!! Capped off with a wonderful pedicure and relaxing Sunday afternoon - much needed!!

I had a disastrous week last week with the computer, which is officially "dead" and at the Geek Squad getting a new hard drive. I'm crossing my fingers they are able to retrieve everything, or it's going to be pretty catastrophic!! Pray for me!! LOL

So I'm limping along on a jimmy-rigged system with my little HP Elite Notepad and some of the items I need to put together a blog post. It's been interesting for sure! But since I lost all of last week, I didn't want to lose a whole 'nuther week, so we'll do the best we can here and see what happens!! LOL

Are you missing out on the spectactular How Sweet It Is Suite (pages 14 & 15 of the Spring Occasions Catalog)? Oh my goodness!! This entire suite of products just grabbed me the first time I saw it, and I am still totally over the moon about it!! I wanted to play with the Sweet Cups back at Valentine's Day, but it kind of fell apart on me. Covering these cute cups with designer paper can be a little tricky. So after consulting with some fellow demos, I finally realized that you need to sacrifice one of your cups to really make this work; and that's what we're going to talk about today!!

Aren't these just the "sweetest" things?? LOL And think of all the wonderful little gifts or goodies you can put inside to give someone. These are a nice-sized cup ~ 2-1/8" tall x 3-1/2" diameter (at the top). So you can get quite few little treats in a cup.

Now the trick really is that not only are we dealing with a "circle" when looking to cover these cups; but they are also tapered ~ 3-1/2" diameter at the top of the cup, tapering down to 2-3/4" diameter at the bottom. So you can't just cut a strip of paper and stick it on.

The easiest thing to do is create a template. And the easiest way to do that is to "sacrifice" one of your treat cups, and basically take it apart. To do that, cut down the "back" seam of the cup; then carefully cut off the rolled rim all the way around the top of the cup. Then what I did was to very carefully separate the bottom-edged seam all the way around the inside of the cup and cut the bottom out. This way I was careful to keep the entire outside of the cup intact.

Now, use your new created "template" - stretch it out and work the curve out of it - to draw around on your desired designer paper. Whatever design of paper you choose, draw the template on the "back side" of that paper so that your chosen design is to the front. The "front" side of this paper is the Highland Heather with all the colorful little dots on it (top cup in the picture above) - and so I drew my template on the "back" which was the Coastal Cabana stripes.

Extend the line(s) (top and bottom) just beyond the end(s) (on both ends of the template) and draw a line to join the two to create an overlap "tab" for yourself.

Then cut just inside the pencil line you drew (all the way around).

Place a strip of Tear & Tape on each end (back side) of the designer paper and line it up with a new cup (I suggest on that back seam) and wrap it around (your "tabs" should overlap). Voila!! It's perfect every time!! Well worth sacrificing a cup!! LOL

Decorate your lids!!

I used the largest scalloped circle and the largest straight edged circle from the Layering Circles Framelits to create a cute "topper" for each of my lids to match/coordinate with the paper around the outside.

And then I decorated - and here's a tip that may be getting missed by some!!

There are images in the How Sweet It Is Designer Series Paper that have been specifically created for easy "fussy cutting." They are all set up and ready to go for you! Nice big white borders around the outside - and nice large images that are super easy for fussy cutting!!

Take a closer look at your papers in this collection - there are 4 specific designs that have been created in this way for you to use the images for card fronts and other uses!! They are FABULOUS!!

I popped up images with dimensionals, and laid others flat with SNAIL to create a fun look.

This is such an incredible suite of products!! From the reversible satin ribbon, to the wonderful stamp set and dies, and the sweet treat cups!!

Don't miss out!! Get your set of products TODAY - in my Online Store!!

Until Next Time . . .

Posted on Feb 26, 2019 at 10:15 AM in 3D Projects / Boxes / Special 3D Card Folds, Birthday / Celebration, Gift Packaging / 3D, Spring Occasions Catalog / Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

Dec 11, 2018

Mix-It Up Mondays . . . Birthdays in December

Hello Fellow Stampers ~~

Happy Monday!! It's nearly the middle of December! The tree is up, everything is decorated, I made my first batch of fudge for the season yesterday!! The Christmas shopping is pretty much complete; and I hope to write my Christmas letter this week and start getting everything put together to go out in the mail. Whew! It would be the earliest I've gotten my act together for the holidays in many a year! My year-end break from work begins this Friday, so I'm really looking forward to being home, having some down time, and spending time at my sewing machine and in the studio. It sounds lovely, doesn't it?!?

December Birthdays! Always a HUGE problem in my mind. Especially those that fall right on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day. My goodness, I've got a number of those on the list this year; something that I hadn't experienced in years past until I met my current boyfriend! Goodness - do we even use that word these days?? LOL (BTW - stay tuned for a BIG announcement coming in that arena soon! ;-) ) Creating a birthday card this time of year that doesn't scream "Christmas" is the mission we have set out to accomplish this week!

My first set of cards I want to share with this theme are all created using the First Frost stamp set, Frosted Bouquet Framelits and Frosted Floral Specialty Designer Series Paper as the jumping off point. I absolutely LOVE this paper - the shimmer is to die for, and it runs throughout the entire set of designs, which is so wonderful! It's retiring very soon - so don't miss out on snapping up an extra package for your stash!

I really wanted to showcase the beautiful florals in this set of papers so my first two cards really showcase some of those. Our third card will be a "masculine" birthday card, that is simpler, less frilly, and I hope works well for a gentleman's birthday right on the Eve of Christmas.

This card uses the more neutral colors of gray (Galvanized Metallic paper for a little shimmer used here in the matting) and brown (Soft Suede), allowing the subtle coloring of Tranquil Tide to stand out. Some added extra glimmer is added using the Joyous Noel Glimmer Paper in Tranquil Tide.

I pulled out the Birthday Banners stamp set for this card, along with the Bunch of Banners framelits to create an easy birthday greeting. I added shimmer to the stamped flowers as well using the Re-Inker and Frost White Shimmer Paint technique I showcased earlier this Fall.

The inside of the card is simply stamped to allow for your message or sentiment.

This card also showcases one of the floral designs in the Frosted Floral Specialty DSP. I love the pinks and raspberries in this particular paper design; I cut the little floral stems using the Frosted Bouquet Framelits and the Merry Merlot color in the Joyous Noel Glimmer Paper collection. A lovely deep pop of color against the background. The sentiment was chosen from the Picture Perfect Birthday stamp set, and works perfectly with the frames in the Frosted Bouquet Framelits.

The inside of this card already has the sentiment stamped, and these pretty cone stems from the First Frost stamp set to match the cut ones on the front of the card.

Our last card design today is for the masculine December birthday showcasing this same paper -- hard to believe isn't it!! With so much floral, you may not realize this wonderful stripe is in this paper collection. I chose the simple leaf pattern to offset the stripe and give some interest. And carried the leaves through the design with the cutouts using the framelit in the Frosted Bouquet Framelits. I coordinated in Pear Pizzazz, Tranquil Tide and the beautiful Copper glimmer out of the same Joyous Noel Glimmer collection. Those Galvanized Buttons with some Linen Thread give the perfect finish. The sentiment on the front? Maybe you still recognize our Eastern Beauty stamp set from the Annual Catalog. Don't forget all our wonderful all year long products!!

The inside is stamped with some wonderful sentiments from the Special Celebrations stamp set (also in the Annual). I love the color coordination of the Soft Suede and Tranquil Tide.

I hope you enjoyed this collection of Birthday cards for the Christmas birthday. We used a beautiful set from the Holiday Occasions Catalog, and I think these look nothing like Christmas, but still have the glimmer and fun! More to come this week . . . be sure to come back and visit. I cherish your comments, and do read every one!!

Until Next Time . . .

Posted on Dec 11, 2018 at 09:36 AM in Birthday / Celebration, Holiday Occasions Catalog / Release, Masculine / Father / Husband, Mix-It Up Mondays! | Permalink | Comments (0)

Sep 07, 2018

Fabulous Friday Fun - Cowbow Boots for Fall

Hello Fabulous Fellow Stampers ~

It's an "off-Friday" here at DDS Studios, and we've been working away on house projects - yeah!! If you're in the area and want to join me, the new Fall/Holiday Season Class Schedule is now up and available. We'd love to have you here for some crafty fun!!

Fall Is Calling . . . Can you hear it? . . .

Today, for some "Fabulous Friday Fun" I think we could use a pair of country boots, all done up with a bouquet of Fall flowers -- I love the sweet country air feel of this card.

A little Country Livin'; a little Varied Vases - and you have a fabulous combination, don't you think?

And there's shimmer paint too!!

This card is cut from Thick Whisper White cardstock, 4-1/4" x 11", scored at 5-1/2".

The matting is in Poppy Parade, which next to Mango Melody, is quickly becoming a favorite Fall color in the repertoire!

Then it's time to "get busy" as they say!

I actually stamped the boots twice for today's project - using Gray Granite (another wonderful color)

Once on the Whisper White card front; and once on scrap and then they were fussy cut.

I played with Crumb Cake and Light Poppy Parade, and a little Smoky Slate from the Stampin' Blends collection for today's coloring of the boots!

I really had fun coloring and blending these boots.

On the card front itself, I added the 2-step stamping flowers from the Varied Vases stamp set.

The stems are inked in Old Olive; the flowers are a combination of Daffodil Delight, Mango Melody and Cajun Craze - for a lovely collection of Fall flowers.

Then the boots are popped with mini-dimensionals over the top to make it look cohesive and like the flowers are coming out of the boots.

Now for some fun - and another little technique tip for your new shimmer paints.

I actually added Champagne Mist shimmer on the boots and buckles (here and there, not everywhere!)

and Bright Copper shimmer on various buds of the flowers.

Here's your tip for the day on this technique. Drop a little 70% alcohol into a paint well, dip your brush, then pick up some paint from the lid of your shimmer paint bottle.

Use your palette to spread and thin the paint and then gently daub it on the areas you want some shimmer.

The alcohol helps thin out your paint and give a more transparent "shimmer" instead of just covering up the ink color you stamped.

I just dipped into my alcohol when I wanted to pick up more paint and loosen up the paint on the tip of the brush.

Note that I used a very small-tipped brush for this project.

This picture seems to have caught some of the shimmer so you can see sort of the different areas I daubed it.

You can see how I blended the light Poppy Parade with the Crumb Cake on the boots; and those are the same areas I added Champagne Mist shimmer.

I added the Bright Copper on all the different flowers.

Here's a look at the pop up of the boots;

I wrapped the top two layers with the new Braided Linen Trim, made a sort of square knot, and then frayed the ends - I love how this looks with the whole theme of the card.

The inside emulate the front with several simple flower sprigs, that also have Bright Copper shimmer added.

I hope you enjoyed today's inspiration - and are starting to feel a little Fall in the air! We've played with both new products, and Annual Catalog products this week to show the versatility for the season. Hope you'll join me next week, as we continue to play - Fall Is Calling . . .

Until Next Time . . . Puppy Hugs,

Posted on Sep 07, 2018 at 07:09 PM in Autumn / Fall, Birthday / Celebration, Holiday Occasions Catalog / Release | Permalink | Comments (0)

Jun 13, 2018

"Pick a 'B'" - June 2018 Stampin' Pretty Pals Blog Hop

Good Morning Fellow Stampers ~

It's that time -- and I'm so excited!! Welcome to the 2nd Wednesday of June - time for the Stampin' Pretty Pals Blog Hop this month! This month we're “Picking a "B'” - Babies, Birthdays or Brides that is! LOL How fun! We always need inspiration for these special events, and I'm excited for what you'll see on today's blog hop! Hint - keep an eye out for new products sneaking into our designs from the new 2018-2018 Annual Catalog!!

You may be starting today's blog hop right here with me, or you may be coming from Jennifer Michalski's blog at Stamping Serenity. Either way, you’ve come to the right place. You’ll find the the full line-up below to help you move, or “hop”, along from Pal to Pal.

Because June is my birthday month, I always like to "pick a birthday" design for my June blog hop project. Today, I hope you will enjoy this special fold and the pretty vintage look I tried to achieve with a mix of products (some non-Stampin' Up!) in this fun project. I also tried a "fancy fold" that I hadn't tried before. I don't know what this one is called, but I love how easy it is to create.

This fold was created from a 5-1/2" x 11-3/4" piece of Tranquil Tide cardstock, scored at 3-1/4", 5", 6-3/4", & 8-1/2". When folded it fits into one of our regular envelopes just perfectly.

To create the heart-shaped "wings" of my fold, I used a Heart die set by LittleB that I bought several years ago. It's a set that embosses a "cross-stitched" edge, and also cuts the shape, so I really love the set.

All my designer papers today are the beautiful Share What You Love specialty designer papers. Really beautiful and so much fun to play with.

I used some retired Lace Doilies (the Very Vanilla side) to set a vintage background; and then used an Impression Obsession die called Ornate Oval Frame to create the intricate border for my sentiment centerpiece. The border is cut from Rich Razzleberry cardstock.

I used the Perennial Birthday stamp set and "fussy inked" each section of the sentiment so I could stamp each line separately; then used the "Happy Birthday" sentiment from the Balloon Celebration stamp set - I love the script font of this stamp set.

I then stamped and fussy cut the pretty little "roses" from the Perennial Birthday set along with the leaves; added the gorgeous Share What You Love Artisan Pearls to embellish the card, and finished it all off with a double-tied bow of both ribbons in the Tea Room Ribbon collection.

Here is the card folded.

Add plain cardstock to the back panels on the back of the card to write your personal message.

Now it's time to see what "B" the rest of the Pals picked for our blog hop today. Then next stop on today's adventure is Beth McCullough at Stamping Mom (she always has something fun to share). Remember, you can follow through all the stops on today's hop using the line up below. Mark your calendars for July 11, 2018, just in time to feature our favorite new designer series papers for the Stampin' Up! B3/GOF DSP sale in July!! Whoo hooo!!! Don’t miss it!!

Until Next Time - Puppy Hugs,