Thursday, January 31, 2019

Cockadoodledoo!!!!

Hello my friends!! So nice to see you today!  I hope you're staying warm.  It's frigid outside, here in East TN.  But, the good thing about the cold weather is that it gives me an excuse to stay inside and craft! :-D


Today's project includes one of my other loves..... Chickens! When I saw the Home to Roost stamp set in the Sale-a-Bration catalog, I knew I HAD TO HAVE IT!!

I'm totally and completely IN LOVE with my chickens and the idea of incorporating them in my paper crafting was an absolute joy!

So, how did I create this masterpiece?  I started with some Cajun Craze Cardstock base.  The embossed layer is actually that wood plank piece I made recently by heat embossing layers and layers of powder over the dry embossed cardstock.  It was part of the "Black Ice Technique" video I shared on the 7th.


The next thing to do was tie some of that burlap ribbon around the layer piece.  The card came together really quickly because I already had the layered piece done. hehe.  It was just laying around waiting for it's fabulous project!  I can't imagine a better one for it either!


For the focal piece, I started with Very Vanilla cardstock and stamped the wheat stamp twice together (stamping off both times) to create a background.  Then, I stamped the Rooster on another piece of Very Vanilla cardstock and fussy cut him out.  Some dimensionals added to the back helped him really POP off the card! I love it!  I used so saffron as a scalloped background.  It was just the right amount of color to make the focal point stand on it's own from the card. 


What do you think?  He's a pretty spiffy lookin' dude isn't he?  I love it!

Well, there you have it friends!  I will DEFINITELY be playing with this set more and will post more projects to share with you. I hope you enjoyed my card.


If you would like to get your hands on the Home to Roost stamp set, I have great news for you!  It's FREE!!!  It's one of the free stamp sets Stampin' Up! is offering during Sale-a-Bration, which means it's only available for a limited time.  So, if you'd like to get your hands on it, head over to my website and place your order today!  The Home to Roost set is FREE with any $50 purchase.

Thank you so much for stopping by my little corner of the cyber world today! I hope you enjoyed your visit.  If you've not already done so, please consider FOLLOWING my blog so that you'll get notified when the next post comes along.  :-)

I hope you have a fabulous day!

Until next time,
Happy Crafting!

Click on any of the icons here to be taken to my website.  The items listed here are what I used to create today's card. 

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Wednesday, January 30, 2019

January Paper Pumpkin Alternative Projects



Good morning friends!! It's a cold and snowy day here in East TN.

I have an exciting blog post for you today! January's Paper Pumpkin kit was one of the cutest I've ever seen.  I really enjoyed playing with it! Did you get one?  What a fabulously adorable kit!!



The kit, as it is, was super cute! It came with a whopping 24 double sided pillow boxes for you to choose a melon mambo or pool party face. There were absolutely *SQUEEEE* worthy critter die cuts (a Kangaroo and a pair of Chameleon), hearts, die cut circle and heart layering pieces, and epoxy hearts too! 

And, the stamp set didn't disappoint either!


With all of this by itself, there was so much fun to be had.  But when you pair it up with the Animal Expedition suite from the 2018 Annual Catalog..... OOOOOOOOH MYYYYY GOSH!!! SO STINKIN' CUTE!!!!


I used supplies from the Paper Pumpkin kit, as well as papers and the leaves ribbon from the suite, to create the alternative projects I'm showing you here today.  As you can see, I had a great time playing with my kit!  Well, for Pete's Sake! You're prolly wishing I would hush and show you already!  Here ya go, friends:


This first one you recognize from yesterday's blog.  It's part of the Paper Pumpkin Pop Up Blog Hop. I hope you have checked it out and visited everyone's pages.  There are some really fabulous alternative projects over there.  Be sure to check it out if you haven't already.  In that post, I share instructions and step by step on how I did the card.  I really like how it turned out. It's one of my favorites! :-)


I did this card on a Facebook live last week when I got my kit. I used only parts of the kit and some Whisper White and Melon Mambo paper.  I absolutely LOVE how you can make your Paper Pumpkin kit anything you want, not just what the kit suggests!


I wasn't really sure how I wanted to use that little striped stamp in the kit.  I'm sure that others will come up with fabulous uses for it. I'm on the lookout!!  But I used it as a background texture for this card.  I like the way it turned out.  It helped keep the card from looking a bit too plain.  I LOVE the grey ribbon used on this card!  It comes in Granny Apple Green too, and we got it briefly in the holiday catalog in Poppy Parade. I truly hope to see the Poppy one join them in the 2019 Annual Catalog. It's a fabulous ribbon!


One of my all time favorite color combinations is Pool Party/Black/White with just a touch of Melon Mambo (or red). With this card, I used a couple of the stamps that might not necessarily be "background stamps" in a background sort of way.  By stamping the hearts in Pool Party and "Be Mine" in Black in a random pattern all over that piece of cardstock, I created an adorable and simple little background that goes very well with the design of the card.  I stamped "Be Mine" on the Kangaroo's little heart to tie it all in together.  CUTE!


What to do with that Chameleon?  Use him as a background stamp, of course!!  Stamped in Lemon Lime Twist, the cute little critter makes a FANTASTIC background for this card.  And, it pairs up nicely with the Flirty Flamingo cardstock.  I used the Poppy Parade striped ribbon from our Annual Catalog to add a bit of texture.  I just love this ribbon. It's one of my favorites!


Fancy Fold Card Exhibit A!!  I absolutely LOVE how this card folds!


And, it's STILL only half a sheet of cardstock for the base! :-) Isn't that fantastic?


I used the Meant To Be dies to create this card.  I just couldn't resist using that little strip of hearts with this kit! It's too cute not to!  You could substitute with a strip of ribbon, or that little striped stamp in the kit.   But, I LOVE the way the little hearts flutter across the card!


The first of 3 Alternative treat projects I did.  I hadn't planned on doing treat packaging since the kit is pillow boxes.  But I couldn't resist myself!  I love doing these with our double sided DSP because you get to see both sides of the paper!


This one is going to find its way into a Valentine's Basket for someone special.  Look for a post closer to the 14th *wink, wink*.   I used Stampin' Up! 2"x8" cello baggies to hold the kisses.  I also used the Blended Seasons Framelit to make the base of the topper.  I just love it and hate that it retired. :'( Sad sad face!  But, you could just as easily cut a rectangle of paper and round the corners for an adorable topper instead.  Layer a piece of Whisper White to stamp on and then add elements from the kit and Shazam!! You've got an absolutely ADORABLE treat package!! Love it!!


Last of the treat packages is this SERIOUSLY ADORABLE "You're one-in-a-CHAMELEON" Hershey nugget box!  Oh my gosh! I just love them!!!  I had some of these tiny little google eyes sitting in my "junk drawer" and they fit PERFECTLY.  So, naturally I had to use them!  They make the box so much fun!  The box itself is fairly plain. I used some of the Animal Expedition DSP to form the box, but then added a skinny belly band and attached the Chameleon die cut with a mini dimensional in the middle.  So it's kinda hanging out on there.  The tag is attached to the underside of the belly band, so when the band is removed, everything comes off with it.  It was a fun and simple little project to do! I love it!


Last, but CERTAINLY NOT LEAST, is this Easel Card.  I had the best time making this one.  It folds down flat for easy shipping, but is held up by that little heart in the middle.  What a clever way to display the inside and outside of a card!  If you haven't yet tried to make an easel card, you should. They're fabulous!  As you can see here, I used elements from the Paper Pumpkin kit as well as several items from the suite. 

Well, there you have it my friends!  This month's Alternative projects for Paper Pumpkin.  I hope that you've enjoyed checking them out and I hope they've inspired you to create your own alternative projects!

If you're not already a Paper Pumpkin subscriber, what are you waiting for?!  Paper Pumpkin is SO MUCH FUN!!!  It's a monthly project kit that comes direct to your door. It always includes everything you need to complete the projects inside, but you are not limited to them (as you've seen here today).  I absolutely ADORE my subscription and always enjoy the challenge of creating alternative projects to share with you. 

If you'd like to subscribe, now is a great time!  You can sign up for any of the available plans by clicking the icons below.  With Sale-a-Bration going on, you can earn FREE products by purchasing a 3-6-or 12 month subscription.

I know you will absolutely LOVE your Paper Pumpkin! In fact, I Guarantee it!! :-D

Thank you so much for stopping by today! I really enjoyed spending time with you.  Please "FOLLOW" my blog if you haven't already, so you will be notified when the next post arrives.

I hope you have a fabulous day!

And as always,
Happy Crafting!

Click on any image below to be taken to my website to learn more. :-) Remember, Sale-a-Bration is the time to earn FREE products! For every $50 you purchase, you get to choose a FREE item from the Sale-a-Bration Catalog!

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Tuesday, January 29, 2019

Paper Pumpkin Pop Up Blog Hop "Be Mine Valentine"


Hello, Hello, Hello my friends!! I have something fun and exciting to share with you today! You've heard me mention Paper Pumpkin before. Some of you may even be subscribers. If you're not already a subscriber, I hope this blog hop inspires you to join, because Paper Pumpkin is FANTASTIC!!! This month's kit is especially exciting because it coordinates with one of my FAVORITE suites in Stampin' Up's annual catalog, "Animal Expedition". The critters are SO stinkin' CUTE and the sentiments are adorable! Everything about the suite from the stamps and dies to the designer series paper and ribbon are ADORBS!!!



Now of course, if the Animal Expedition suite is cute, then you KNOW the Paper Pumpkin kit is gonna knock your socks off! It's the cutest kit I've seen so far! I LOVE IT!!


See what I mean?  That Kangaroo was my favorite critter in the stamp set, and now I've got it as a die cut to embellish these adorable little Valentine's pillow boxes!  And the little chameleon is an excellent addition to my critter stamp collection!! ha! The kit also comes with two sweet little birds, some hearts, a texture stamp, and some really cute Valentine's sentiments. 



Now, you may be learning that I LOVE creating alternative projects with my Paper Pumpkin kits.  This month's kit was A LOT of fun because I love the Animal Expedition suite so much, and I love making Valentine's cards! hehe.  Well, with that said, let me show you the project I made for our hop!


Since the ink spot in the January kit was Melon Mambo, I started with that as my card base and first layer.I got the texture on the layer, by using the vine embossing folder in the Petal Pair set.


  I added a lot of dimension to my card by using some dimensionals and foam strips.


I stamped the little birds in black and colored them with the Light Pool Party Stampin' Blends, and Light Mango Melody beaks.  Stampin' Blends are THE BEST for coloring things in!  Then I stamped the sentiment in Melon Mambo to tie it all back.


I really wanted scallops instead of just the Stitched Rectangles we have.  So, I improvised and made a scalloped Rectangle out of a Scalloped Square.  I have a video posted on my youtube channel, showing how to do it. :-) Be sure to check it out!



I decided to use the little Rhino and his pet bird on the card too. I thought it went really well with the birds on the sentiment piece.


Now all that's left is to glue some of the suite's fabulous vine ribbon down one side and adhere our pieces with dimensionals and foam strips!


The card came together really well and I absolutely LOVE how the Paper Pumpkin kit and the Animal Expedition Suite coordinate!

You will find some really great alternative projects along this hop.  So, make sure you visit each of the blogs along the way to see a new and creative way to use this kit!

I've really enjoyed being a part of this blog hop, and I hope you've enjoyed your time with me here! If you have the kit (or are a paper pumpkin subscriber), I'd love to see YOUR alternative projects! Please join my Paper Pumpkin Groupies page on Facebook and share your projects there. :-)

Thank you for joining us as we share with you the possibilities of Paper Pumpkin, now hop over to Miss Debbi's blog to see her fun creation.



And as always, Happy Crafting!



If you'd like to get your hands on any of the products you see here, contact your demonstrator to order. If you don't already have a demonstrator (or I'm yours. ha!) please feel free to click any of the icons below, to be taken directly to my webstore where you can purchase.

If you're not already a subscriber, but would like to sign up for Paper Pumpkin, now is a GREAT time to purchase a Pre-Paid subscription of 3, 6 or 12 months! With Sale-a-Bration going on, you can earn FREE PRODUCTS with every $50 you purchase INCLUDING a pre-paid Paper Pumpkin kit! Click one of the icons below to go to my website and learn more!


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