Christmas Sprig ~ A Fun Stampers Journey Project

Today's post is a bit different than normal.  
It has more than a card and it's leaning a bit toward Christmas.
Yes, I know it's a bit early for Christmas, but I'm creating a project for
something special and thinking ahead...for once!

Everlasting Luminary Gift Set!

It's time for me to share another project with you. This lovely gift set was created by Julie Beltramo and you can get the details HERE at Craft Project Central.

Everlasting Luminary Gift Set!

This sweet and sparkly little gift set is sure to please! Learn how to quickly, and elegantly, turn a battery-operated tea light into an everlasting décor piece. Then you’ll learn how to make the coordinating gift box that is the perfect custom size to fit the three tea lights. And the simple, but sweet card will make this the perfect hostess gift for those holiday drop-ins!

Remember I will be giving away one free subscription to Craft Project Central for the month of December.  I will give full details when I post my project mid-December. :)

Thanks for looking and have a great day!

Sara

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I would love to be your demonstrator! If you like what you see and want to order anything just click on any of the products that I've listed at the bottom of my blog or click on the "Shop Now" tab at the top of my blog. Any of them will take you directly to my website! If you have questions feel free to contact me. Just click "Contact Me" at the top of my blog . If you're thinking of becoming a demonstrator click "Join My Team". I'd love to have you join me!

So Grateful for You

Can you believe it?!  I'm not posting a card.  I think I've done that twice this month.  I guess it is that time of year though when we start to think about gifts for Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas. So for today's Friday Mashup challenge we needed to make a box project.  I was thinking about using the 2"x 2" box that Stampin Up! is selling right now, but decided to quickly make up my own instead because I wanted to put leaves on it and the other box would have been way too small.  So here's our fun challenge from Lisa this week...

Create a "Box Project". 

Create a project with a "Thanksgiving or Thankful Theme".

or Mash it Up! and create a "Thanksgiving- or Thankful-Themed Box".

To make the box I cut two 5" x 5" pieces of Naturals Ivory card stock, ran it through the big shot using the woodgrain embossing folder, scored it at 1" on every side, snipped in a few spots and taped the sides together...bam you have a box.  Ok, so there's just a little more to it than that, but once you've done it a time or two it's pretty easy.  I sponged the 2014-2016 In Colors on my leaves and used the Gorgeous Grunge set for the spots on the leaves.

Make sure you head over to the Friday Mashup HERE to see the other great projects and to play along too.  We'd love to see what you create. :)

Thanks for looking and have a great day!

Sara

Supplies used on this project:

Built for Free Using: My Stampin Blog

Delicate Doilies and Serene Silhouettes

Today I have 3x3 thank you's in a gift box and a small gift bag (perfect for any kind of chocolate! lol) to show you.  I really enjoyed making the cards and box because I was just staring out with my first of sixteen things. lol  My gift bag was the last thing, but I didn't want to just do cards.  Yup, I was running out of steam (and time), but loved every minute I had to sit and create everything.  It had been so long since I was able to take a couple of days to be crafty for more than one quick thing at a time.  

Thanks for looking and have a great day!

3x3 Thanks You's

Stamp Sets:  Serene Silhouettes & My Friend

Card Stock:  2012-2013 In Colors & Whisper White

Classic Stampin' Pads:  2012-2013 In Colors

Punches:  Word Window, 1 /14" Circle & 1 3/8" Circle

Sizzlit:  Delicate Doilies

Ribbon:  3/8" Taffeta in Whisper White

Shimmer Paint:  Champagne Mist

Gift Bag

Stamp Set:  Field Flowers

Card Stock:  Island Indigo & Whisper White

Classic Stampin' Pad:  Island Indigo

Bigz Die:  Fancy Favor 

Sizzlit:  Delicate Doilies

Ribbon: 3/8" Ruffled Ribbon in Island Indigo

Book Markers and Boxes...

Well, it's been a while since I've posted regularly.  Let's see if I can break that habit and get into the swing of things again.  The rest of this week and into next week I'll be posting a couple of pics each day of the things I made for my upline's open house.  I made eight things using the new Serene Silhouettes set and eight using the new Delicate Doilies Sizzlet, so that will give me a few days worth of posts.  Now let's see if I can add a sketch challenge in here every now and then too.  I wanted to make something more than just cards so I started with a set of book markers using each of the stamps along with sayings from a few other sets that are in the current catalog.

I know it's a little early for Christmas, but I wanted to copy something similar to what I made a while back using the Paper Doily die, but this one was smaller and much easier!  I made another ornament and box to put it in where you can see through the cover.  It takes a little bit of work, but it wasn't difficult at all.  

Thanks for looking and have a great day!

Book Markers

Stamp Set:  Serene Silhouettes

Card Stock:  Whisper White

Classic Stampin' Pads:  Real Red, Daffodil Delight, Wild Wasabi & Pacific Point

Edgelits: Adorning Accents

Ribbon:  3/8" Taffeta in Whisper White

Embossing Powder:  White

Christmas Ornament and Box

Card Stock:  Cherry Cobbler & Whisper White

Classic Stampin' Pad:  Cherry Cobbler

Sizzlit: Delicate Doilies

Ribbon:  1/2" Seam Binding in Cherry Cobbler

Shimmper Paint:  Champagne Mist

Petite Purse

Well, I'm cheating a little with today's post.  I don't have a card, but a project instead...that I didn't have to plan at all.  We had our Red Hot Stamper's demo meeting last night and Glenda had these cute purses for us to make.  They would make great shower, wedding or girl birthday favors that's for sure.  One thing I like about them is they are very quick and easy to make! :)

Thanks for looking and have a great day!

Card Stock:  Tempting Turquoise, Real Read &  Summer Smooches DSP

Bigz L Die:  Petite Purse

Punch:  Boho Blossoms

Large Pearl Basic Jewels

RHSSC 31

Hello everyone and Happy Easter!!  I guess I posted my Easter card earlier this week, so for today it's another Happy Birthday for the Red Hot Stamper's 31st challenge.  I wasn't sure what I was going to do with this challenge at first, but once I had my colors picked out my idea seemed to come right together. :)  Head on over to the Red Hot Stampers to check out a few more cards for this challenge.

Thanks for looking and have a great Easter!

Stamp Sets:  Elements of Style & Afterthoughts (retired hostess)

Card Stock:  Real Red, Crumb Cake, Basic Black, Very Vanilla

 & Mocha Morning Specialty DSP

Classic Stampin' Pad:  Real Red

StazOn:  Black

Punch:  1 3/4" Scallop Circle

Embossing Folder:  Vintage Wallpaper

Bigz Die:  Top Note

Ribbon:  5/8" Satin in Basic Black

Brads:  Glimmer Basics Black

Crimper & Sponges

He is Risen

Today's card was a fun one to make and simplified my lily making process a bit.  Last summer I made a Stargazer lily for my sister's b-day card (here).  I loved how it turned out other than it didn't have as much of the cone shape as I would have liked.  Well, last week I happened to see a tutorial for making lilies and I HAD to give them a try again!   What better time to make them than around Easter.  I'm sure a lot of you are familiar with seeing pictures or cards with the lilies placed somewhere on or around a cross and I decided to give it a try myself...and there happened to be a couple of challenges out there just for Easter. The Hand Stamped Sentiments challenge #111 Easter and the 4 Cafty Chicks challenge #83 Easter and Crazy Egg.
For those of you interested in giving the lilies a try check out this tutorial here from Valita.  She has a LOT of great (and free) video tutorials out there for you to watch...thanks, Valita!
Just a note...I made my lilies VERY small and had to adjust everything accordingly so they would fit on my card.  I have the size of the oval punch I used listed with the supplies below...

Thanks for looking and have a great day! 

Card Stock:  So Saffron, Certainly Celery & Whisper White

Classic Stampin' Pads:  So Saffron, Certainly Celery & Soft Suede

Embossing Folder:  Framed Tulips

Bigz Dies:  Lattice & Oval Scallop

Punches:  1 3/8" x 5/8" Oval (retired), Blossoms Petal XL & Boho Blossoms

Ribbon:  5/8" Organza in Whisper White

Crystal Effects & Dazzling Diamond Glitter

Shimmer Paint:  Champagne Mist

Sponges

RHSSC29

Ok, I've updated this to show you were I got the instructions on how to make the sweet peas.  The link is at the bottom where I have all my card's info.

Welcome to Sunday.  That means it's time for another Red Hot Stampers' sketch challenge.  Today's card has flowers on it that I've wanted to make for a while, but never took the time to do.  I actually have sweet peas that climb one side of the fence of our dog pen in the back yard and they look so pretty in the summer when the flowers are blooming.

Check out some other cards made with this sketch here.  If you're game why not make up a card yourself for the challenge. :)

Thanks for looking and have a great day!

Card Stock:  Wisteria Wonder, Pretty in Pink, So Saffron, Wild Wasabi,

Bashful Blue, Perfect Plum & Whisper White

Classic Stampin' Pads:  Rose Red, Daffodil Delight, Wild Wasabi, 

Marina Mist, Perfect Plum & Elegant Eggplant

Embossing Folder:  Perfect Polka Dots

Punches:  Butterfly, Boho Blossoms ( used one similar to a star) & Bird (used wing)

Ribbon:  5/8" Organza in Whisper White

Click here for the link to the tutorial that I watched to make my flowers...thanks to Maria!  I used the Boho Blossom punch for the bottom of each flower and cut out two sections of it and folded it over.  I couldn't get the other punched piece to work.  Maria's looked so nice and mine did not! lol  Also, notice I used ink pads slightly darker than the card stock that I used.  Before I sprayed my "flowers" with water I sponged around all of the edges with the ink.  The ink really bleeds, so when the flowers end up drying they have bled some of the darker ink on the tips and into the flower a bit.  You can't see it in the picture, but it looks nice in person! :)

RHSSC25

It's time for another Red Hot Stamper's Challenge.  When I first saw this sketch I had no idea what to do with it since the sketch is like an envelope.  Then I stared thinking about making a rose with the new Blossom punch just to see how that would turn out.  I must say this has been the most challenging sketch challenge so far, but I do love a good challenge. :)  Head on over to the Red Hot Stampers blog to check out a few other cards using this sketch.

Thanks for looking and have a great day!

Stamp Sets:  Elements of Style & Curly Cute

Card Stock:  Rich Razzleberry, Wild Wasabi & Whisper White

Classic Stampin' Pad:  Rich Razzleberry

Punches:  Blossom, Scallop Trim Border & Scallop Trim Corner

Shimmer Paint:  Champagne Mist

Crimper

Birthday Wallet

It's birthday time again and this time it's for one of my nephews.  I always make purses for the girls, so I thought I'd come up with more than a card for the boys this year.  That means it's wallet time for them. I love how it turned out!  Hopefully my nephew will enjoy it too.  Not so sure guys are quite as excited as girls about this kind of stuff, but you never know. ;)

The same tradition...$1.00 in their card.  Yup, I'm cheap, but it still makes them happy at this age! lol  I decided to make a counterfeit credit card, Michigan driver's license and a library card.  Yes, all fake and just for the fun of it.  I wish I could show you the picture I put on his license because it's hilarious (at least I think it is), but I value my privacy (yeah, that's why I have a blog! lol)...ok, the little bit of privacy that I have, so I won't post any pictures of other people without permission. 

Thanks for looking and have a great day!

Nope, I didn't take any measurements for this project.  I just eyeballed it and went with the flow.  

Stamp Set: Definitely Decorative Pines (retired, but the moose was perfect for the front of the wallet)

Card Stock:  Chocolate Chip

Classic Stampin' Pad:  Early Espresso

Embossing Folder:  Square Lattice

Sticky Strip

Paper Doily Die Day 3

Today's post is day three of things created using the Paper Doily Die.
I know...today's stuff is really more for Christmas, but the box could be used any time of the year. :) This ornament is actually the first thing that popped into my mind when I was coming up with ideas for all the projects I needed.  I didn't want to use the whole doily because I thought it might be a little big for a Christmas tree...at least it would be for ours, so I trimmed it down. I cut out eight doilies to make the snowflake, glued them together, sponged them on the very edges and sprayed them with shimmer paint mixed with alcohol.

Then I decided to make a box for the ornament...after all, that could be counted as another project. :)  I needed to figure out a way to use the die for the box, but didn't want to just cut out the pieces and put them on the box, so I cut out the die shape from the top of the box, put the doily piece over it (and under) so you could see into the box.

 

Thanks for looking and have a great day!

Card Stock:  Rose Red & Whisper White
Classic Stampin' Pad:  Rose Red
Paper Doily Die
Ribbon:  1/2" Seam Binding in Rose Red
Shimmer Paint:  Champagne Mist

Christmas Ornaments

Well, I've been busy the past couple of days working on a few ornaments for gifts.  Yup, I'm definitely a little crazy for taking these on...and I still have way too many to do!  I saw the idea on Splitcoaststampers and decided to make one about a month ago for my Red Hot Stampers Secret Santa exchange.  Of course my ornament die is a lot smaller than the one they used on Splitcoast, but I HAD to try it anyway.  On my first attempt I used vellum paper and a brayer to color both sides different colors.  The vellum was too thick and it kept popping apart so I went through some of my old supplies and found a bunch of  mulberry paper that I had never used.  I had a huge piece of white so I cut it up the right size (enough for 18 pieces...which I cut with one run through the Big Shot!) and went a little crazy with the different colors.  Now I need to get busy making boxes so I can give them away...

Thanks for looking and have a great day!

Birthday Purse

I had a lot of fun making today's card and gift for my niece.  My upline  Glenda  made a purse like this, and I ended up getting one; so I thought it would be the perfect purse to make for my niece this year.  I also made her a little notebook to go in her purse...

and a card that fit perfectly too.  I came up with my own fun saying for her that started on the inside of the card...

then it has to open even more to read the rest.  I also put in a pack of gum (that she has to share with her brothers and sister) and a dollar in change.  I usually hide a dollar bill somewhere in their card, but I just did change in her purse this year. That's a tradition I've done for each of them since their first birthday.  I'm afraid someday a dollar just won't be enough! lol

Thanks for looking and have a great day!

Yellow Birthday Rose

Well, last week I said I was going to post another rose card that I made and here it is.  The color for this one was inspired by one of my own rose bushes.  Even though my roses are yellow and pink this one turned out yellow and orange because of the way the ink blended together...but I love the color anyway!  I think I finally figured out how to make a decent box to put these kind of cards in too.  Now if I can just remember everything I need to do the next time I need to make one. lol

Thanks for looking and have a great day!

Stamp Set:  Afterthoughts (retired hostess)

Card Stock:  Whisper White and Garden Green

Classic Stampin' Pads:  Daffodil Delight & Rose Red

Punches:  Decorative Label,  Fancy Flower & Boho Blossoms

Embossing Folder:  Elegant Bouquet

Sizlit Die:  Little Leaves

Jewels:  Basic Pearls

Shimmer Paint:  Champagne Mist

Blue Rose Birthday Card

Can you believe it?!  I'm posting something to my blog and it's the middle of the week!  Ok, a day later than the middle of the week. ;)  I've still been busy creating cards, just not taking the time to blog what I've done. If I could just put a pic on I'd be all set, but I like to add at least a few words in with the pictures!  Today's card is one I actually  made almost a month ago to give to one of my coworkers.  I've always wanted to try making a rose, so thought I'd give it a try this time because I'd been giving 3-D type cards to the other ladies I work with.  I have to admit making this one was a little time consuming because it was my first try, but I loved how it turned out!  I'm just hoping the rose didn't fall off the card before she got it home! lol  I did make a second card that I'll post in a day or two...ok, maybe a little later than that.  The second rose went together a lot easier and it's put together better too.  I guess practice does make perfect...or at least starts heading you in that direction. :)  There are a lot of blogs where you can get instructions on how to make a rose, but this is where I found my instructions simistamper.blogspot.com.  The two things I did differently is I didn't use glue...I used sticky strip instead, and I also snipped about an eighth of an inch into each "v" of the flower petal so it didn't rip when I was curling the petals (well I did on my second rose at least!).  

Thanks for looking and have a great day!

Stamp Set:  Afterthoughts (retired hostess)

Card Stock:  Marina Mist,  Garden Green & Whisper White

Classic Stampin' Pad:  Marina Mist

Embossing Folder:  Elegant Lines

Bigz Die:  Top Note

Sizlit Die:  Little Leaves

Shimmer Paint:  Champagne Mist

Beautiful Wings

Today's card is for a couple of challenges that I really wanted to do, and I thought the design and colors would go together perfectly.  I used Stamping 411's sketch challenge for the design and The Friday Mashup for the colors, butterflies and bling.  

Thanks for looking and have a great day!

Card Stock:  Perfect Plum, Marina Mist, Wild Wasabi & Whisper White

Classic Stampin' Pads:  Perfect Plum & Marina Mist

Embossing Folder:  Vintage Wallpaper

Embosslits:  Beautiful Wings

Punch:  1 3/4" Scallop Circle

Jewels:  Basic Rhinestones

Shimmer Paint:  Champagne Mist

Crimper for leaves

Stargazer Lily Birthday Card

Today's card is one I made special for my sister.  I know she happens to like stargazer lilies, so I thought why not put one on a card for her.  I used the colors and idea similar to my first clematis card.

Thanks for looking and have a great day!

Stamp Set:  Elements of Style

Card Stock:  Rich Razzleberry, Pretty in Pink, Pink Piroutte, Wild Wasabi & Whisper White

Classic Stampin' Pads:  Rich Razzleberry & Garden Green

Punches:  Blossom Petals (Used for leaves) & 1 3/4" x 7/8" Oval

Embossing Folder:  Elegant Bouquet

Shimmer Paint:  Champagne Mist

Purple Clematis

Here is my second clematis flower card that I said I would put on...with instructions at the bottom. :)  I loved making them, but they were a little bit of work!  I made this one as an anniversary card for my mom and dad and used Saturday Sketch Challenge 207 from Stamping 411 for my design...although I did have to make the card 5 1/4" x 51/4" to fit the flower.  Here is the flower that I got my inspiration from and Stamping 411's sketch challenge...

A picture of the whole card.

A close up of the clematis...nope, they don't have sparkles, but I like to add it anyway. :)

...and the inside with a little bit of embossing in here too.

Thanks for looking and have a great day!

Stamp Sets:  On Your Birthday & a retired Happy Anniversary stamp

Card Stock:  Elegant Eggplant, Marina Mist, Garden Green, Rich Razzleberry & Whisper White

Classic Stampin' Pads:  Elegant Eggplant, Marina Mist, Garden Green & Rich Razzleberry

Punches:  Blossom Petals (indirectly) & Decorative Label

Embossing Folder:  Elegant Bouquet

Ribbon:  5/8" Grosgrain in Marina Mist

Here are step-by-step instructions on how to make the flower with a few tips first.  I found that Whisper White does not hold it's shape as well because it's a thinner card stock.   I still used it, but it will tear easier so you'll  need to be careful especially when trying to get the ruffled edge look.  I also wanted my petals bigger so I traced them, then enlarged them and printed them out on my cardstock. You don't have to do that, I just wanted mine a little bigger. :)  

You need to punch (Blossom Petals) or cut out eight petals.

 Take your mat pack (you need the cushion underneath) and using your paper-piercing tool run a few lines down the center of your leaf.

I used an older, small (and dull!) pair of scissors to curl the leaf up just like you do to make ribbon curly for a present.  I would start at the bottom of the petal and pull it to the top, repeating it until I got the look I wanted.

Now it's time for sponging.  For the white clematis petal I pinched a sponge until it was nice and thin so I could get a small stripe down the middle and not anywhere else on the petal.  Note:  When I sponged the white petal I had the side that I used the paper-piercing tool on facing up, but on the blue/purple petals I wanted them bumping up so I turned it over. :)

 I sponged the outside of the petal first...

then did the middle, pressing and dragging from the bottom of the petal to the top.  If the groves don't stand out, use your piercing tool again because you want the stripes down the middle to be noticeable.

This is what they should look like when you have eight of them done. :)

Next I punched out a 1/2" circle, then a 1" circle and sponged it to match the petals.

I attached the petals using adhesive.  You can use whatever you're comfortable with.  I just didn't want to use any sort of glue for this part because the petals would slide all over for me. :(

Once you have the petals where you want them, use your paper piercing tool to poke holes all around the center of your flower...

turn it around and pierce some more if necessary and then pull it out so you have about a 1/2" hole.

I cut a piece of rich razzleberry card stock 7" x 1 1/2" and made close cuts around 1/2" long.  I also added a small Whisper White piece to make it as close to the real flower as possible.  Make sure you add it on the correct side to get the right effect.

After I got all the slits cut in I trimmed it down a little and added adhesive.

I used the paper-piercing tool to start folding it in keeping it tight!  Sorry, guess I don't have a picture of that. :(  I did not start on the end that has the white.  I wanted that on the outside.  

It should look something like this when you are done. 

You need to fan some of the outer pieces out...

and push the inside down so it folds in a little.

It should fit right in the hole you put in your flower. :)

Turn it upside down and glue.  I used the multipurpose liquid glue (Tombow) and let it dry over night.

To make the leaves you use the same size piece as you did for the petals.

Use the mat and paper-piercing tool to draw the veins on the leaves.

Turn it over and sponge around the edges and over the "veins" to get this look.

Cut a few thin strips of card stock, sponge them a little and curl them with your scissors.

Now put everything on your card however you think it should look and viola! you'll have a clematis!  

I hope you enjoyed looking over my instructions.  It's a little bit of work to make, but after you've done it once, it's not so hard to do the second time around. :)  Find a picture of a clematis that has colors you really like and give it a try!