DigiStamp Boutique Emile Invites You!

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The last day of 2010 is here! It's been so much fun to get creative and be inspired by all the crafters in this online community. I know I've spent many hours jumping over to follower's blogs for some fun ideas, to galleries for inspirations and community blogs for challenges. I hope to keep doing that in 2011.

DigiStamp Boutique's EMILE invites you to 2011! Come and join in the fun of a new year, no RSVP required.

(P.S. He can also be a great baby or toddler invitation card too!)

I hope everyone of you will have a safe New Year's Eve and a joy for the New Year!

God bless...

Details:
Stamps: DSB Emile and Balloon, Stampin Up Mark the Date and Please Come
Paper: Scraps of paper, photocopy paper
Ink: LaserJet, Prismacolor Markers, Basic Black
Accessories: Spellbinder's Circle Dies, Stampin Up Spiral Punch, Tasteful Trim Bigz Die, Dimensionals, Paper crimper, Tim Holtz Mini Stapler

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A little Hippo Coverage

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I'm sharing a sewing project that has consumed a portion of my creative brain power. My brother-in-law asked me if I could create this cover from a drawing he had made and I was completely apprehensive about my ability, but I figured with some help from everyone I knew and a few late nights, that it could be done.

The project was a cover or bag for a gaming device called a Play Station Portable (PSP). You know, I was able to pull out my fancy sewing machine and sew! (And use the seam ripper... and sew with a walking foot... and rip out seams... and hope... and sew... you get the idea.)

I'm so pleased with how this project came out and I hope the recipient likes it too.

Ta - da! Isn't that hippo darling? The design is a doodle made by my brother-in-law and then he sent it along with some fabric to a wonderful friend of ours who has a new embroidery machine.

A little side panel view.

A button closure was a must!

Enough space on the side for the tassel to hang out and the ability to get the PSP out of the cover easily.

The inside really needed some cushion and also give some form to the design. I walked up and down every aisle in the fabric store and came across something called headliner in the upholstery section. It's actually the fabric you would see if you looked up at the ceiling in your vehicle! No teasing.

I started with a fabulous tutorial at The Cottage Home. Thanks Lindsay! Her tutorial made it super easy to understand how to sew a liner into a bag.

I'm glad the project is done, but I have learned so much about sewing because of it that I'm so glad it did it. Thanks to all who helped me out and patiently supported me. Love you all!

Hope you are all doing well with your projects this week and taking some time to treat yourself with a break.

#PlayStationPortable

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A Merry Birthmas Card - Commissioned

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A super quick post with a splattering of details, but I had to show you this card with an adorable mushroom house from Make It Crafty, an Australian-based company, who sells some of the neatest background scene and house stamps.

I was asked by my hubby to make up a card that he could give to his brother for a combined birthday and Christmas present and in his humorous style he blurted out, "A Merry Birthmas card!".

The mushroom house has a banner made by little ol' me because I thought it just needed one to celebrate a fantastical event. Celebrations need banners! LOL The stamped sentiment comes out of the Verve Great Friend set.

I printed out the images on kraft paper and used my Prismacolor pencils. A technique that has piqued my interest since viewing some adorable cards Victoria has been showing on her blog. I used OMS and a paper stump to blend in the mass colors (blue sky, red mushroom cap and scales on the stem) and went back over with a lighter/darker or complementary pencil color to give dimension.

So glad it's the week before Christmas, that means we are just committed to having fun this week. Hope you are all going to be able to do the same, in some way, too.

God bless you and your family during the holidays!

Details:
Stamps: Make It Crafty Mushroom House, Verve Great Friend
Paper: Kraft, Old Olive, Dark Red, Basic Black
Ink: LaserJet, Prismacolor Pencils, Graphite Black
Accessories: Spica Clear Glitter Pen, Martha Stewart Photo Corner Punch, Bigs Leaves Die, Martha Stewart Scoring Board (for 6 x 6 envelope)

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Birthday Warm and Cozy

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I'm stopping in for a quick post with another Beau image from DigiStamp Boutique's Offer of the Month. She's Birthday Beau.

I used my prismacolor markers on Beau and sponged Vintage Photo ink around the edges after rounding the corners. Matting is a dark red from my local paper store rounded a couple of corners on that one too. I had made some background paper a while ago and had it in a stash pile that I rounded the corners and placed on some Crumble Cake cardstock. I believe the technique I used is embossing folder first, then ink up a brayer to run across the raised texture and lastly use a mister filled with water to spread the ink a smidge (tiny amount). I stamped a sentiment from Stampin Up's Fresh Cuts and cut it out with Spellbinders Large Labels to tuck underneath the mat.

This is the first time I've done a ribbon technique like this and I didn't want to make a mess of my layout trying it out. My quick fix was to put some red line tape on a piece of scrap kraft paper and then if it turned out I'd adhere it to the card. That worked out so I wouldn't ruin the card and waste any ribbon!

After everything was on the card I grabbed my new favorite pen, Spica Clear glitter pen, and quickly traced a center line over all the embossing of the background paper. It doesn't show up in my photos ~at all~ but it looks really nice.

Thanks for checking out my creative puddle today!
Details:
Stamps: DSB Birthday Beau, SU! Fresh Cuts
Paper: Neenah Solar White, Kraft, Dark Red
Ink: LaserJet, Prismacolor Markers, Vintage Photo ink, Spica Clear Glitter pen
Accessories: Offray ribbon, Tim Holtz Texture Fades EF, Spellbinders Large Labels, Crop-a-Corner, sponge

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Christmas Gifts of Tags

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I mentioned in an earlier post that I was making some labels for a friend who gives out delicious food gifts. I finished up this project moments before I met with her the other day. Why am I telling you about this again?

I was finishing up the packaging part of the gift and I just had to share, that's why! It's so easy to pull together. The photos might not be the best because I really had no time to check them before I dashed out the door with it.

I've had this tutorial in my inspiration pile for awhile just waiting to get used, and it was just perfect for this gift packaging. The tutorial is from Susanna Boyd over at Paper Craft Planet for one of the 3D Challenges. I made a simple cover for it with a tag embossed in gold on kraft cardstock and some snowflake punches. I added just a bit more bling using my clear Spica pen on the snowflakes (which doesn't show well in any of the photos I took, sorry).

Two things that I didn't think about when diving in to the album were the dimensions of the labels and the size of the album. Tiny tag and 4-inch tall album. My solution to this minor dilemma was some clear acetate and a small amount of repositional tape on the back of the tiny label. She can just peel it off of the acetate and then apply it to her gift.

The ribbon on the labels made the album rather plump so I only put one each of the two I designed. I made a few tags using a new favorite stamp and die from Verve and inserted them in the rest of the slots. I put the remaining labels in a vellum envelope so she would have a place to store them without flattening out the ribbons. I know... too much information. LOL

Tag Album and tag Details:

Stamps: Verve Sweet Scallop Stamp and Glad Tidings

Paper: Old scrapbook set from Walmart, I mean years old, kraft and gold cardstock scraps

Ink: Versamark

Accessories: Ranger's Queens Gold embossing powder, Stampin Up Gold cord string, Chocolate Chip Grosgrain ribbon, Martha Stewart Snowflake punch, Verve Sweet Scallop Die

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What a Beau-tiful Wish!

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Happy Friday everyone!

How are all of your Holiday projects coming along? Mine are slowly getting done and I'm not panicking yet (that's good news). It will all become clear that I didn't give myself enough time to get any of them done though, but that's okay. My family really understands how I work...they'll get it when I'm done with it. LOL

That's about the same with my card making. I've had this image colored and waiting to get put on a card since last weekend. I just had to take my time to figure out how to put it on a card. It needed a great framing style layout.

Winter Beau is the digital stamp on the main panel and she is my favorite from the December Offer of the Month. She's just amazing! I colored with Prismacolor markers and pencils, but I pulled out my chalks for a soft brown background around the image.

I layered some ribbon behind the main panel and then a panel of kraft stamped with Hero Arts Cling Stamp called Friend in Creamy Caramel. It's not even noticeable in real life, but the left and right side of the background panel was cut with a perforated blade.

The sentiment ensemble is stamped and embossed with a Verve saying out of the Kind Words set on a red cardstock scrap. I made a ribbon banner with a strip of leftover embossed white cardstock using the Stampin Up Petals a Plenty Textured Die and some more green grosgrain ribbon. I was in the mood to tinker around with a button and some beads and wire to finish off the ensemble.

The key ingredient in starting the layout happens to be the red ribbon tucked under the green grosgrain and the main image. That red ribbon is part of a fabulous grab bag I got at my local fabric store. I think there are over 10 yards of ribbon in all sorts of gorgeous styles and colors. The price of one bag? $0.20 I could not believe how gorgeous some of this ribbon was so I bought three bags. You just can't pass up that great of a deal, right?


Thanks for going down my thrifty lane for a bit there, but now on with my card for today.

I hope you enjoy your weekend and hopeful you all will find some time to relax.

Challenges I played in with this project are:
Splitcoast Stampers Ways to Use It - WT299 Letters
Secret Crafters Saturday Challenge - Christmas
Paper Issues - Holiday Hook-Up

Details:

Stamps: DSB Winter Beau, Verve Kind Words, Hero Arts Friend Definition

Paper: Old Walmart Scrapbook kit, kraft, Neenah Solar White, Real Red

Ink: LaserJet, Prismacolor Markers and Pencils, Stampin Up Pastels, VersaMark, Ranger Walnut Ink Stain

Accessories: Craft wire, glass beads, green button, White embossing powder, green grosgrain ribbon, red satin ribbon, paper crimper, Stampin Up Petals a Plenty Textured Die, dimensionals, ISP red tape, Glue Arts Raise'n and Ribbon adhesives 

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A quick post with a quick project today!

Last month the project at our local MOPS group was this quick and great idea. We used Martha Stewart's Cook's Helpers template, laminated and cut out. A split key ring is slipped through a hole punched at the top of each helper and a bow tied to the ring. So quick and perfect for a gift by itself or as part of the gift tag.

Thanks to Lori M for coming up with this idea! {wink}

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Quick Christmas Cards

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I hope you all are having a satisfying start to the weekend. I've been working on some knitting projects and enjoying the decorated Christmas tree in front of me. I love to bring out my assortment of teddy bear ornaments, especially the jointed ones that my dear friend Stephanie somehow manages to find year after year. SO CUTE! So I love to have anything festive about my house and with that in mind I have two cards to show you today that came together quickly and the images steal the show. Cute Nativity Kids and the tree image from Christmas Doodles are on these cards. They were part of the November Offer of the Month and I just can't get enough of them!

Nativity Kids Details:

Stamps: DSB Cute Nativity Kids, Verve Richly Blessed (temporary link to the Reveal at SCS)
Paper: Cream Cardstock, Brocade Blue, Kraft, Neenah Solar Smooth White

Ink: LaserJet, Prismacolor Markers, Spica Clear pen

Accessories: Holtz embossing folder, hemp twine, muslin

Christmas Doodles Tree Details:

Stamps: DSB Christmas Doodles, Verve Glad Tidings (temporary link to the Reveal at SCS)
Paper: Kraft, Neenah Solar Smooth White, Scrap of Carmine Red CS
Ink: LaserJet, Prismacolor Markers
Accessories: Holtz embossing folder

 December Offer of the Month is a new image character that has so much potential. Jump on over to DigiStamp Boutique and have a looksey!

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A Gift

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I had a little get together with the steering team for our local MOPS group this week and decided to use some of my creations as a gift. I have seriously not done this before as a hostess thank you, so I was a bit worried how it would turn out. I think it will be a great simple gift.

I used Verve's Sweet Scallop coordinating stamp and die with silver heat embossed powder.  Just wrapped the clear box with wire rim ribbon like a gift and tied the tag with Stampin' Up silver cord. Done!
 

I'll be back tomorrow with some cards using DigiStamp Boutique images and some more perfectly styled Verve sentiments.  I hear there's a release going on it a few minutes at Verve's SCS forum. Go check it out if you've got some time. I'm off to a Craft Night!

Have a great weekend!

Details:
Stamps: Verve Glad Tidings
Paper: LSS Deep Red CS
Ink: VersaMark
Accessories: Zing! Silver EP, Stampin Up Silver Cording

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