Showing posts with label Off the Page. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Off the Page. Show all posts

Gelli Prints and Fun Foam Fun!

Hi Everyone!  My post today is what I have done for my Altered Pages DT post this week.

After recently attending a Stamp Carving Class at my LSS, Time to Create, I was reminded and reintroduced to the versatility of Fun Foam, which you can buy at your local $ (dollar) Store in an assortment of shapes and sizes.  At this class we carved our own stamp designs.


These two shell like ones were some of my designs from that day.  Anyway whilst carving these stamps I was thinking how great it would be to use them with my Gelli Plate.


  

The first of the above prints I have added some yellow (Gelato) to highlight the design, whilst the second was  a ghost layer of the first print layered over another print.

So this week I decided to break out the fun foam and play some more.


I used my Sizzix Border Strip Die to cut some shapes, some of which I then etched a pattern into.



By pressing these shapes into a layer of paint applied to the plate, it removes the paint revealing the design.


You can do this and then apply a different color over the top to give this type of result.


You can lay the shapes over the plate in any way you choose.  Using different colors for the second layer can give different looks - for instance this one has the pattern more subdued.

The best part about using the Gelli Plate is that there is always an element of surprise with the end result.


And I so love the results achieved layering the ghost prints (second/third generation prints) one on top of the other.  To achieve fabulous textured backgrounds with great depth.

And to finish my post today - here is another way to use up your prints which you are going to have plenty of since playing with this plate is highly addictive.


I have layered cut squares of this print like a patchwork and used some fun foam die cut shapes to embellish.

If you'd like to try this technique, you can purchase your own Gelli Plate and Acrylic Paint to get you started at Altered Pages.

FWF - Inspirational Gift Giving


It's yet another Unity Friends with Flair Friday!  My how the weeks are speeding by. 

Well if I haven't said it enough I will tell you again I love my Unity Stamps!  As well as great images they also have some wonderful sentiments and quotes.  One Set that took my fancy was their Quote Bundle Pack which has five inspirational quotes which are not only perfect for cards and scrapbook pages but make a wonderful gift idea.  With a touch of decoration and a coordinating frame they become a wonderful Inspirational and rather inexpensive Gift for a friend. 




Knowing my love for butterflies, you no doubt knew I couldn't go past using this particular quote.

As well as using your creative skills there are a huge variety of cheap frames available at your dollar discount stores so the possibilities are endless.   You may like to use a more basic frame and decorate it aswell to make your gift even more unique and one of a kind.

Don't forget Unity Stamp Company is having a Huge Inventory Reduction Sale leading up to Christmas.  Right now this Quote Bundle Pack along with 10 other best selling sets of 2011 can be yours for $11.  And if you buy all 11 Sets they can be yours for $100.  There are many other fabulous savings to be had so be sure to check them all out on the Unity Website.

Wishes from Our House to Yours


This morning when I woke up and was visiting some of my blog friends (Paige)  I saw a post that triggered both a happy and sad memory for me.  It took me back a few years ago to happy times scrapping with my best friend Toni and showing her how to make Wine Bottle Tags for her husband.  Her husband John worked in Real Estate, so it was customary for him to give a bottle of wine to his customers when they purchased or sold their home.......my thoughts then immediately came to John who sadly passed away just over a fortnight ago following a very short battle with Cancer.  It just felt so right that I make a Wine Bottle Tag this morning for my post to share with you for Friday Friends with Flair.






I immediately knew which stamps I would use from the November Unity KOTM, and that it would be another great project for using up some Christmas Paper scraps left over from my card making.  

I enjoy the odd glass of wine as do my family and friends so it is no suprise that wine is often part of our Christmas Gift Giving and I think these tags would make a wonderful personal touch.  The saying Drink & Be Merry comes to mind as I write this post, but I would also be sure to tell you not to drink and drive. 

Now because this is a FWF post it means that over on the Unity Blog you will find lots of other wonderful inspiration using Unity Stamps, and the Friday $5 Feature, which again this week is actually two stamps at less than $5.  But the even more fantastic news is that a Huge '3 Week Inventory Reduction Sale' is now on over at the Unity Stamp Co Website, with over 150 items up to 45% off.  So be sure to check all this Unity Goodness Out!

Finding the Joy - More Christmas Creating - Challenges x 3


It's not often that I do this, but this is my second post today.  You see the weather hasn't been the best today it almost feels like its reverting back to winter......which is very strange following the absolutely glorious summer's day we had yesterday.  So because of this I stayed indoors, neglected the housework and chose to participate in a combination of challenges to use up some scraps left on my desk and a couple of items I have had sittting in my stash for a while now.  I decided to Find the Joy by doing something I enjoy!  Creating!



From my last few posts I had all my Unity Christmas Stamps still sitting on my desk, along with my left over bits of Echo Park Merry Christmas Papers, so I thought this was the perfect opportunity to create something for our November Tangled Up in Creativity Challenge being hosted by Julie over at Time to Create.  Julie challenged us to create using left over bits we had from other projects.  The stamped image Find the Joy I had stamped to use on a card but wasn't happy with the look of this with the paper I was using, so I have used it here instead.  The stamped flowers are a few I stamped out using the smaller stamp from the Unity Generations Set which I used in my earlier post today.  The dotty paper and red die cut scallop strips are left overs from this card aswell.

I had almost half a piece of Holly Patterned Paper from the Echo Park Merry Christmas Collection from the second card I made earlier today so this was a perfect choice to create something with for the current Holly Challenge over at Inkurable Stampers. 


And the project I wanted to create was using the K & Co MDF Door Hanger that I purchased a few months back on sale for $1.  

I am hoping that this will qualify me for the $ Dollar Store Makeover Challenge over at All Things Unity.

I do hope you Find the Joy not just at Christmas but all year round in everything you do, because life is too short to spend it any other way.

Thanks for stopping by.







Black, White and a Bit of Colour

Yesterday was my FIL's Birthday so it is kind of fitting that my post today is a birthday card, which is something I haven't done a post of in a while.  I have used two of my favorite Unity KOTM Stamps, the sweet birthday cupcake image and the harlequin background.

Athough it is Saturday here in Australia, it is Friday still in the states so this is also my post for Unity Friends with Flair, a weekly post and link up where you will find lots of other Unity Lovers showcasing their work and Unity Stamps.  I just love visiting all the other crafters blogs.


Stam

There was a little bit of technique involved - Masking, Embossing, Punching, Colouring and Popping Up for Dimension.  But overall I found this quite quick to make.

We are celebrating my FIL's birthday today with a birthday lunch and here is what we are giving my him as a present. 


You may remember last month I did a Steam Punk Class at a Retreat I attended.  The interactive layout (all the cogs/wheels turn) we did at the class was designed to sit on a stand and has a photo of my FIL with his first grandchild.  Luke (grandson) is now 18 so it is quite fitting that this layout features a flying clock as Time Really Does Fly.

Thanks for stopping by.

Going Old School with Unity for FWF Friday

This week I found lots of creative play time which was a good thing, because it meant I was able to attend a Scrap Class at Time to Create.  I haven't done one of Julie's Scrap Classes in ages and it was so much fun.  We got to learn how to create some fabulous accent pieces/backgrounds using the new Tim Holtz Distress Stains, our chosen stamps, a spritz of water and some glimmer mists.

I also managed to do an example layout for this weekend's cybercrop on the Scrap Lounge and to play along with the current All Things Unity Challenge which I am sharing today for Friday Friends with Flair over at the Unity Stamp Co Blog.
 


Going Old School was the challenge, with a Vintage theme and those of you who know me well, know I do not do much Vintage Stuff, nor do I do pretty all that well........

Having been a member of the Unity KOTM Club for a few months now I have been accumulating some lovely stamps that lend themselves to beautiful vintage creations so I just had to give it a try and I was so pleased I did as I am kinda happy with the result. 

I started with a favored pieces of Stampin' Up! Paper, I just love the colours of pink and green together.  Then I simply played with a variety of the KOTM Stamps, can you see them?

I used the floral stems from the July KOTM simply as a mark along the edges of the background paper.
I used the My Heart Sings Music Background Stamp on the torn pink cardstock piece
The gorgeous  Beauty In All Things Stamp as my main image and sentiment.
and lastly the cute Checkered Butterfly for extra colour, and dimension.  After all who doesn't love a butterfly.  The stamping was all done in a variety of brown tones and I sponged some and inked the edges too!

I made one of my favorite scalloped circle rosettes, added a few other paper/ribbon flowers, some punched leaves, vintage lace and there it was my Vintage Creation

Truthfully I was really amazed and happy with how it turned out, so much so that my card quickly morphed into becoming a home decor piece.



With liking the dimension and texture of this I thought it would look great in one of the white shadow box style picture frames I own.  Obviously being originally made as a card, it wasn't quite the right size for the frame, but I backed it with a piece of kraft cardstock which frames it further and adds another dimension.  It has found a new home, on my beside table with the fairy I hand painted many years ago.  Being quite chuffed with how this turned out, I think I will play with the idea of creating home decor collages a bit more, and see where the what if? takes me.  I have my eye on the fabulous printers trays from Crafty Individuals now too.  I can see many wonderful collage sheets being cut up for use in projects such as this.


Challenges I have entered this card in:

All Things Unity - Going Old School Challenge (see link above)

Fringed Flowers Five Ways.

This month the featured technique on the ScrapLounge is Paper Rolling.  Here is one project I did featuring this technique.

It is a paper flower arrangement of Fringed Flowers made in a variety of ways.  They are quite simple to make and once you have the hang of it you can used a variety of papers, patterns and sizes to create a unique arrangement everytime to suit your mood, colour scheme etc.

You simply take a 12 x 12 piece of double sided paper and cut into strips. Then cut a fringe along this strip by placing cuts at equal intervals.   Once you have done this simply take a bamboo skewer and roll it up.  Fix the end so that the roll stays in place and then pull down the fringe to create petals.  This creates a flower like the small black and red polka dot flowers in the picture.



You may like to layer the fringed strips, starting with the smaller width roll this onto the skewer and then take the longer fringed piece and roll this around the first strip keeping the base of both strips in line.  Flatten down the petals for a layered look, or change it up a bit by placing the smaller width inside the wider width and roll onto the skewer together so you get an alternating petal length throughout the flower.  This is like the red and cream patterned with cream and red polka dot flower.  You may also like to punch a small circle and add this to your flower to create a centre for your flower.

Two more variations are to use a smaller width fringed piece for the centre and instead of pulling it down to form petals leave it standing up to imitate a stamen (see the Checked Red Flower at the front of the Arrangment in the picture above) or to attach an extra contrasting strip of paper to the fringed strip prior to rolling which is the approx width of the uncut part of the fringed piece and start by rolling this onto the skewer first.  This creates a contrasting flat flower centre for you (this is not shown in the picture).



This picture is a close up of some of the layered fringed flowers

For this arrangment I used the Double Sided Designer Series Papers from Stampin' Up - Love Letter.  The vase is an empty tinned tomatoes can which has been cleaned and covered with Designer Series Paper and embellished with Ribbon.

Whats in the Box?

This week at Party Time Tuesdays the Challenge Theme is 'How Lucky, make a box or container' and our sponsor is Twosday Techniques and Stamp Fairy.

March 17th is St Patricks Day, hence the How Lucky Theme to this weeks project where we had the choice of two cute images from Stamp Fairy and followed the wonderful box tutorial from Twosday Techniques. 

Here is my example.


The shamrock paper was a free digital paper design I found on the net.  I have to say that this box was surprisingly quick and easy to make given I hadn't made one quite like it before.  It will definitely be one I will use again.

I do hope you will party with us this week.  So why not make everyone you know green with envy and check out the tutorial for this wonderful box and get creative.  Whilst on the PTT Blog why not also check out the great box designs from the rest of the Design Team.

Christmas Treats are hard to Beat.

The project I am sharing today is part of my Christmas Gift Giving.



They are small treat bags made using the Sizzix Party Favor Die and Stampin' Up! Stamp Set Gifted which I have found so very versatile this holiday season.  I have filled them with small chocolates, after all who doesn't love Chocolate?  To personalise them all I have also used a monogram stamp to add the intitial of each recipient to the bag as well.  This will also make it easier for the designated Santa to recogonise the recipient on Christmas Day if they aren't wearing their glasses.

Hopefully the chocolate doesn't melt too much in the excessive humidty and heat we are having following the phenominal amount of  wet weather we have had marking the start of Summer. 


Reindeer Gift Box for the latest Tangled Up in Creativity Challenge.

April over at April's Alley is hosting the latest Tangled Up in Creativity Challenge, check it out!

She has asked for us to design a holiday project suitable for the local boy scout's group to give to local nursing home.

I found a tutorial some time ago for a very cute Reindeer Ornament Gift Box, on the Paper Punch Addiction Blog, which I have taken the idea from for this post today, however instead of making my box from the Sizzix Scallop Envelope Dies and following exactly how they made their punch reindeer I have altered this slightly and used just a very quick and easy box made from folding a 6 x 6 inch piece of designer paper.  I think the reindeer is so cute, and this would make a cute gift filled with special treats, or like the original tutorial, a Christmas Ornament.
This was thrown together very quickly using some paper scraps and card leftovers I had on hand.   Punches used were the Stampin Up Ornament Punch, Wide Oval, Large Oval, 3/4" Circle and I hand cut the antlers, nose, ears and eyes.  The original tutorial used the Sizzix Bigz Tulipe Die for the antlers, and I am sure there are also other great dies or punches out there that would be suitable for the antlers, and facial features.  The sentiment is from the Best Yet Stamp Set (Retired - Hostess) by Stampin' Up!  The ric rac border was created from cardstock using a zigzag punch (non SU).

The girls at TUC are coming up with some great gift ideas so be sure to check these out by visiting April's Blog.  Better still why not enter this challenge.  April will randomly draw a winner from non Tangled Up in Creativity Members entries at the end of the voting period.

Christmas Gift Tag Holder and Tags

Today I want to share with you a sample I made based on an idea I saw at my friend Julie's at Time to Create.  I liked the look of this cute Gift Tag holder when I saw it, so I came home and made one from scratch without instruction.  As they say practise makes perfect, as I did encounter a few hiccups along the way, but finally got them sorted.   I think it is slightly smaller than the one I saw at Julie's but for my first attempt I can change the size if required.







This was the also the first time I used the new Vintage Wallpaper Embossing Folder from Stampin' Up! which I have to say I am in love with.  I have applied ink to the inside of the folder before running it through the Big Shot, so you get a two tone appearance.  I used the new Colour Cherry Cobbler on Red Riding Hood Cardstock.

The other colour I used for the inside of my gift tag holder and coordinating tags was Old Olive along with some retired Christmas DSP.  The main stamp set used was the new set Contempo Christmas as well as one sentiment from the Best Yet Set which was a hostess gift last year.  The tags were from a Cuttlebug Die Set.

I think this idea would make a cute gift idea, don't you?



Card Purses make the Perfect Thank You Gift

I recently made four card purses which hold four coordinating cards to sell at the markets. My favorite one was the one I am sharing with you today which was made using the Cottage Wall DSP, Cottage Garden Stamp Set and my three favorite Stampin' Up! Colours - Rich Razzleberry, Old Olive and Orchid Opulence.




I love these little purses, they are so easy to make, and are the perfect gift to give to someone as a way of saying thanks. I made the card below as part of the set I included in this purse. I embossed the Rich Razzleberry Strip with one of my cuttlebug embossing folders that had lots of flowers to coordinate with my stamping and add some extra interest.




The sentiment on this card is from the Seaworthy Stamp Set by Stampin' Up! of course, which I stamped onto Orchid Opulence cardstock and then mounted this onto some coordinating Cottage Wall DSP.

I do love Rich Razzleberry and Orchid Opulence together so I have made sure I have stocked up on Orchid Opulence Cardstock since it is being discontinued.   :(

If you would like to learn how to make a card purse with four coordinating cards, contact me to arrange a lesson.

Chelsea's Stampin Party - Calendar Project

Today I helped Chelsea and her friends celebrate her 10th Birthday by providing two hours of stampin fun with a Stampin Party (Stampin' Up Workshop).

Chelsea wanted for her and her friends to make a Calendar.  Her chosen colours were Pink and Purple and she wanted a large calendar which showed 12 months.

This is the Sample I had come up with to work with as an example they could follow.



This way they could decorate the front and than hang it up on the wall with photos displayed aswell as the calendar.  (My sample photo just shows blank photo paper where photos could go).


The girls had brought a selection of photos of their family, friends and their favorite pets to use, and as part of the Stampin' Party Package I offer, Chelsea got to choose a Stamp Set to keep. The Bugs and Kisses Stamp Set with cute little bugs and querky sayings was a hit with all of Chelsea's friends and they incorporated snails, dragonflies, and lots of other bugs onto their calendars along with the flower images from the Scribble This stamp set that I had used to do my sample with and the Butterflies from the Flight of the Butterfly Set.

I found a suitable calendar A5 in size on the internet and printed it out from July 2010 to June 2011.  I then used my perforating tool from my Stampin' Up Cutter Kit to add perforations to the top of each page containing the months so that the girls could simply tear each month off when it was over.

Everyone had fun colouring in, punching out, adding glitter and placing their favorite photos onto the pages.  On the Calendars, they marked their birthdays with the circle frame stamp from Vintage Labels, (as seen on the Calendar above), and also stamped and punched out little presents (from Party Hearty) to mark the people special to them birthdays as well as stamping a little Christmas Tree to mark Christmas Day.  Although I don't think any child needs reminding what day is Christmas Day.


This is a picture of the Birthday Girl with her Calendar that she made today, and yes the other person you can't see (well you can see a hand and neck) is me. I don't like photos being taken of me, so I love digital technology cause I can crop myself out or delete. 

It always amazes me how fun it is to do kids workshops all whilst I have their parents telling me how patient I am.  Maybe its because I don't have kids of my own that I enjoy the small dose of being in the proximity of children every now and than. 

So a big thank you to Chelsea, Mishayla, Mia, Jessica, Sarah, Kaitlin (I am not sure if I have spelled correctly) & Kiara for sharing their day with me and making it fun.

Mini Magazine File Holders - Definitely Worth a Note


Aren't these cute, they are a mini magazine file holder filled with matching note cards and envelopes.  They make the perfect little gift set to give to someone or to keep for yourself and use the notecards to give to your friends and family.  I made these seven sets (all different) to sell at the upcoming Lismore Car Boot Market.  

The template for this and the idea came from my downline team member Judi!  So a big thank you to Judi for sharing this with me as I love them.  Each card is approx 6 x 9cm and the envelopes they fit in are 6.5 x 9.5cm.


This first set is using the Sweet Always DSP and Pun Fun Stamp Sets by Stampin' Up!.  I coloured in my images with my Stampin' Write Markers.  I added a felt flower with brad centre to the magazine file for an added touch.  The felt flower is from the Flower Fusion II Accent and Elements Kit by Stampin' Up!.



Both of these sets are using the Cottage Wall DSP and Cottage Wall Stamp Sets, with the Sincere Salutations Sentiment Stamps being used on the cards in the Olive Magazine File whilst the Rich Razzleberry Magazine File's sentiments are from Vintage Labels.



For this set I used Pun Fun coloured in with my Stampin' Write Markers again, and have teamed it up with the Spot on Jumbo Wheel to create my background in So Saffron Ink.



One of my all time favorite colour combos is Pacific Point and White, so I couldn't go past using this with one of the Pacific Point Patterned DSP's and my Sincere Salutation Sentiment Stamps.  This set has a more crisp, clean, elegant look.  I used my Boho Blossom Punch and Clear Rhinestone Brads to create the flower.



I was really happy with the way this set turned out, and I think the colours I used in this set turned out to be my favorite, they are a very soft and pretty combination of various shades of pink, green and yellow.  Once again I used my Stampin' Write Markers to create this matching set, colouring in images from the Fast Fun Notes Stamp Set.  This stamp set is a great set for beginners as it has a stamp for most occasions and the sentiment is included with the image on the one stamp.  You can choose to stamp the image with or without the sentiment.




For this last set I have used some of Stampin' Up!'s Incentive Stamps which I have collected over the years, which are tiny little stamps usually used as hostess gifts etc.  I chose to use these as they are just the right size for framing on the front of my note cards and they have some really cute little images and sentiments.

Todays post is a little longer than normal, thanks to all the images, but I just couldn't do this post about the magazine file holders without sharing them all with you.  It certainly shows you the endless possibilities available for this cute little project.  I hope you like it.

Danielle