June 2010 Make & Take: card for a dad

This is the June Make & Take that I designed for the LSS, only it was started a little early. I did the kits up for the crop that was on Friday night, so the store had it to give out for the Memorial Day weekend.

There is no sentiment inside, so it can be used either for Father's Day or for a Dad's birthday card. People can stamp or write what they want inside it.

The background embossing folder was from the Sizzix "Hello Friend" set. The two embossed rectangles were cut out after embossing a quarter sheet of cardstock with a Tim Holtz embossing folder (the one that goes with the Bingo embossing folder). Yes, there was a lot of waste that way, but I wanted people to see a different way to use it. I'm not sure who the stamp set was by. The stamp was from a Father's Day set that I bought at the LSS two or three years ago at least.

Enjoy!

Mothers' Day card

The owner of the LSS asked me to do a Mothers' Day card for a special Mothers' Day tea party and book signing at the store. She handed me the papers. It's pathetic, but I actually have no idea who makes the papers or flowers. I was in a BIG hurry to get the kits done since I was to pick up my son by a certain time (despite my trying to rush, I was still late). I didn't even check to see who the paper manufacturer was.

The center label was cut with one of the Alterations dies. The stamp was a Studio G stamp that I found at AC Moore. I used chalk ink on the edges.

The flower center was supposed to be a brad painted with Smooch enamel, but even after 24 hours, the brads hadn't all dried all the way (despite the label claiming that it's fast drying), so the LSS owner substituted a jeweled brad instead. (And no, I don't know who makes those, either.)

2010 May Make & Take

I used an old Sizzix die for the tag background, a new Tim Holtz Alterations die (Styled Labels) for the darker blue background behind the stamped circle, a Cuttlebug die for the tiny tags, a Prima stamp for the circle, and an Inkadinkadoo script background stamp on the large tag base. I used a chalk ink on the edges. The Alterations die did extend out on the sides of the tag base, so I just trimmed off the edges. It's a simple and quick project.

Between the LSS and AC Moore, I have found and bought 12 of the new Alterations dies. Most of them are very versatile, so they will probably be showing up in a lot of my future projects. It was during my search for the Alterations dies that I also found the Prima stamp at AC Moore. I got the Inkadinkadoo stamp at Michaels. I bought all the items with 40% off coupons, with the exception of the Prima stamp which was only $1.99 anyway. Gotta love those coupons if you can find something worth buying!

April 2010 Make and Take

This little tag and pocket are the Make & Take that I designed for the LSS at the beginning of the month. Of course, the idea of using a punch at the top of a pocket is not new. I'm sure it's been done many times before. I noticed that a class project at the LSS used a Martha Stewart punch at the top of a tag pocket, and I liked how the teacher had used it. However, I made my pocket by hand from start to finish rather than using a die-cut. A tutorial follows in the next post down on this blog.

The stamp was from one of the Studio G clear dollar stamp sets I bought at Michaels, AC Moore, or JoAnn's a year or two ago. I think the flower punch is by EK Success. I punched three layers, creased each petal in half from flower center to outer edge of the petal, put a brad through the center of the three layered flowers, and bent the petals of the two top layers upward for dimension.

The tag is from a Sizzix die. The embossing on both the pocket and the tag was done with two Sizzix folders that came in the Baby Set #3 (Sizzix Textured Impressions). I positioned my pocket and tag on the embossing folders in a way that used only the parts of the folders that I wanted to use. One folder had writing which I did not want to emboss on my pocket, and the other had gifts and baby shoes that I also did not want to be embossed on my tag. Pictures that show the process and what the tag looks like outside the pocket will be posted another day.

Martha Stewart tag pocket tutorial Part 1

Begin with a rectangular piece of cardstock cut to size shown in the photo below.

Click on each photo for a larger image. Directions are printed on each photo. Once you bring up the enlarged image, it may revert to one that fits in the window, but you can click on it to get a closer view.

The pocket piece in the above photo is

not really skewed weird like it looks.
It's just the angle of the photo that

makes it look like it's not cut straight.

Tutorial is continued in the next post down.

MS Pocket Tutorial Part 2

Although the pocket is made by hand instead of done with an electronic cutter, it really doesn't take very long.

Get Well Shaker Card

I am a sucker for embossing folders, as you can probably tell if you've looked through my blog. When I found some new Sizzix embossing folders at AC Moore, I couldn't resist. The one I used for this shaker card is from the Sizzix Textured Impressions Wedding Set. I simply used detail scissors to cut out the inside, which I didn't want since it had the following text: "Wishing you all the best on your very special day." I needed a get well card for a dear friend who was seriously ill in the hospital, so the embossed text really didn't fit. I loved the design of the folder, just didn't need the saying inside. Once I cut out the inside text section, I applied clear transparency behind it. I attached the "get well soon" (from a Cuttlebug die set) onto the front of the transparency. Then I put poster tape on the back, all around the opening (but where it wouldn't show), added the usual stuff for making a shaker card, and attached the card base. I embossed a few of the punched flowers, layered small Prima flowers on top of the punched flowers, and that was it.

My friend was too drugged to enjoy it (she nearly died), but her mom liked it. My friend is much, much better now, but I just hadn't gotten around to getting the picture off my camera till today.