Mr. Dasher, welcome back.

Its time for Dasher Again!!!

Happy Dance! Happy Dance!

I love him so much.

SO. MUCH.

This week's challenge at the Pals Paper Arts is all about the browns. As soon as I saw these colors I knew what to do. Dasher was made for this!

Don't they look good on him?

Ok, well he'd look good in anything but still, Soft Suede brings out the elegance of his sparkly antlers like no color I've ever seen :)

Here's one last view. Hopefully you can see how the paper is a bit shiny around the edges and on the stamped images?

 I used a bit of Champagne Mist mist shimmer paint (of COURSE he goes for the Champagne. He's so classy!) on a sponge dauber over the inked up stamp for the images. On the edges I used a clean dauber to add some subtle sparkle for the overall shimmery effect.

And I've been holding on to these Mini Vintage Tags forEVER. I should have known my muse would be Dasher!

I used:

* Dasher, Many Merry Messages and Snow Swirled stamp sets

* Soft Suede ink

* Champagne Shimmer Mist and sponge daubers

* Very vanilla, Soft Suede and Early Espresso card stock

* Mocha Morning Designer Paper

* Mini Vintage Tags

* Chantilly Crochet Trim

Snow Swirled Gift Box

What goes better than rhinestones and snowflakes? Nothing. Because of this, I designed set of cards all around a similar theme of navy, silver, snowflakes and lots and lots of rhinestones. I couldn't help myself.

These pictures totally make it look my wall is the color of throw up but just try to look at the cards instead, ok? If I spent less time stamping I might have time to paint my house, but to be honest, I doubt it would come out much better. I'm not great at picking out paint colors. Don't judge me.

This box comes with 6 cards and envelopes. Perfect for a gift OR to use yourself. Either way, the cards are all really nicely finished with stamped liners on the inside and stamped envelopes to stuff them into.

And did I mention the rhinestones? Well, there are a lot of them, and they're really sparkly!

I also used accents of Brushed Silver card stock on each card which, if you haven't tried yet, you totally should!

Thanks!

Christmas in July!

And you thought only QVC did this didn't you?

I know I'm a bit nuts for making and posting this card so early in the Season, since it's still summer, but I do like to get a jump on things and it's been 6 entire months since I last used all my Christmas stamps. That's a pretty long time considering about half my stuff is Christmas themed.
Anywho, here's the card I've been dying to make since the Basic Rhinestones came out in the new catalog. Can you see them on the tree? It's better in person. I promise.So, here it is...Merry Christmas!

I used:

*Snow Swirled stamp set

* Crumb Cake (the color formerly known as Kraft) Always Artichoke, Cherry Cobbler and Very Vanilla

* Ribbon Border Punch, Basic Rhinestones

PPA 14 - In the Pink

I've stepped way from my Christmas Stamp Set Countdown today to enter my very first challenge.
http://www.palspaperarts.com/
I've been meaning to submit something to the Pals Paper Arts for a while now but this week was so fun and for such a great cause that I couldn't resist any longer. So here they are, my pink, breast cancer cards. Yes, they're still Christmas, and yes, they're pretty similar to some cards I made a few posts ago. What can I say?

You may not be able to tell from the picture but these two cards are covered in glittery embossing...and pink-ness. If I were a princess these would totally be my Christmas cards!
Both cards use the same supplies and techniques, just arranged a little differently on each one. To see a great tutorial on how this technique works , click here:
http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/resources/tutorials/embossing_resist/

I used:

* Snow Swirled stamp set (and Teeny Tiny Wishes for the little tag)

* Chocolate Chip, Whisper White and Pretty in Pink card stock

* Regal Rose, Versamark, White Craft and Chocolate Chip ink

* Iridescent Ice stampin' emboss, stamping sponges, Top Note Bigz die

Snow Swirled Continued...

After making all the navy and silver cards for the last post I just had to use this set in a different way. By the way, if you check my "Dasher" post you might notice that I used the snow flake and greeting images from Snow Swirled on almost all of them. Snow Swirled is one of those stamp sets you can just use over and over and over and never get sick of. Trust me, I would be sick of it by now.

For this first card I used the embossing resist technique with iridescent ice embossing powder and Not Quite Navy ink on a sponge. Its a fun technique to try but it does take a couple tries to get it just right. Here's a great tutorial if you'd like more info:
http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/resources/tutorials/embossing_resist/


I used:
*Snow Swirled stamp set
*Not Quite Navy, Kraft and Whisper White card stock
*Not Quite Navy ink
*Top Note Bigz Die
*Kraft taffeta ribbon, Iridescent Ice embossing powder, stamping sponges

For this next adorable card I used chalk. Yep, no ink at all...Well, except Versamark. For a tutorial on this technique, check this out:
http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/resources/tutorials/poppin_pastels/
I used:
*Snow Swirled stamp set
*Real Red, Garden Green and Whisper White card Stock
*White satin ribbon, Versamark ink, corner rounder punch, Stampin' Pastels and sponge daubers

Next up...Glitter! (This one's for you Baby!) I was at a craft store the other day and saw the prettiest wreath made of turquoise and brown glittery jingle bells (sorry there's no picture) and I thought, hmmm, I bet that would make a cute card. So here it is. What the picture doesn't show well is that there is glitter on the tree as well.
I used:
*Snow Swirled stamp set
*Close to Cocoa, Chocolate Chip and Whisper White card stock
*Tempting Turquoise and Versamark ink
*Top Note Bigz die, Tempting Turquoise 1/4" grosgrain ribbon, Tombo liquid glue and Dazzling Diamonds glitter

And last up is a card copied from page 4 of the Holiday Mini catalog except with different stamp set. It measures 6 1/2" x 3 1/4" and fits in a long open end envelope. Its a fun size, especially if you're going to put money inside!
I used:
*Snow Swirled stamp set
*Real Red and Whisper White card stock
*Real Red, Old Olive, and Chocolate Chip ink
*1 1/4"circle punch, rhinestone brads, Old Olive 1/4" grosgrain ribbon

#7 - Snow Swirled

So I was chatting with a friend the other night about how great navy and silver would look together in a card (thanks Michelle) and decided I better try one. Just one. Well, it looked so great I figured I'd try one more and pretty soon it was 2am and I was getting out of bed to make just one more thing. My mother would say these look a little Jewish and actually, the do say "Season's Greetings" so...Happy Hanukkah!

For this entire post I used:

* Snow Swirled stamp set

*Night of Navy and Whisper white card stock

*Night of Navy ink

*Platinum Shimmer Paint

*Silver elastic cord

*Round metal edge tags

Tip: After inking the tree stamp in Night of Navy ink, I used a sponge dauber in Platinum shimmer paint to highlight the little flower bursts. I did this right on top of the navy ink already on the stamp. No need to use markers or anything. Its a really cool effect but without any of the fuss.

Tip: To make the silver background paper that is matting the tree I just pounced platinum shimmer paint around the edges of some white card stock with the sponge dauber and let it dry for a minute or two.

And here is a box I made. Cute right?

There is a great tutorial here http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/resources/tutorials/3x3notecardbox/

I just didn't use any of the patterned paper because I made my own!

Tip: I first cut the card stock to size, then stamped it with Platinum, waited a few minutes and then stamped over the top with Night of Navy.

Tip: To make the tag on the top, I punched the snowflake out using a 1 3/4" circle punch and then glued it into the tag. It fits perfectly!

And here's the inside...

I filled it with three 3x3 note cards with envelopes as well as three large metal edge tags with snowflakes on one side and "To: From:" on the other. The tags would actually make pretty great ornaments too. But I thought tied on a gift they'd be oh-so-pretty.

And finally, there are two more cards with the same theme. These are 4 1/4" square so they still fit in regular envelopes. Have I mentioned I really like that size?
To make the stamped white piece of paper (card on the right) I just layered platinum and navy snowflakes the same was as I did on the box. For the navy background paper (card on left) I did the same thing but its a little hard to see the navy on navy. Still pretty though.

Which do you like better?

#8 - Tree Trimmings

Here they are, all the cards I made with the Tree Trimmings stamp set. I had originally not even planned on buying this set but then threw it in at the last minute because its only cost $14.95. Now that I've used it I LOVE it! Its so fun and pretty and makes whatever type of card I'm in the mood for.

For this card I used:

*Tree Trimmings and Berry Christmas stamp sets

*Garden Green, Real Red, Very Vanilla and Chocolate Chip

*Merry Moments designer series paper, Real Red 5/8" grosgrain ribbon

tip - to get the string and the ornament and the greeting to line up where you want them, use the Stamp-a-ma-jig. I just bought it and it has really added a lot to my stamping.

I got inspiration for this card at www.forloveofpaper.com

I used:

*Tree Trimmings and Snow Swirled stamp sets

*Soft Suede, Real Red and Whisper White

*Christmas Cocoa specialty designer series paper, Ticket corner punch

This is my favorite! Growing up I was taught that Christmas colors are red and green. Period. So I felt a little guilty using pink but it looked so much like a peppermint that I couldn't resist. Sorry Mom.

I used:

*Tree Trimmings and Many Merry Messages stamp sets

*Pretty in Pink, Real Red and Whisper White

*Real Red 3/4" Polk dot ribbon, Rhinestone brads

Tip - This card is 4 1/4" x 4 1/4". Which means it is just smaller than a regular A2 card and still fits in a regular envelope. I LOVE this size card! Whenever I make square cards they're almost always this size.

This card was hard for me because it's not my normal style but I think it turned out ok anyway.

I used:

*Tree trimmings and Many Merry Messages stamp sets

*Always Artichoke, Certainly Celery and Whisper White

*Silver brads, Ticket Corner punch, and white satin 5/8" ribbon

This is a gift card holder. I got the idea from the October issue of Stampin' Success.

*The brown piece is cut to 4" x 7 7/8" and then scored at 2 3/8" and 5 1/8"
* White piece is 2 1/2" x 7 1/4" and scored at 2 1/2" and 5 1/4" ( or a little bigger) to be the belly band that slips onto the gift card holder.

* I added a strip of scalloped red to the white piece and then embellished with Real Red , Old Olive and Chocolate Chip.

And here's a picture of the inside. I stamped a quick 'To: From:" and a gift card. Actually, I didn't have a gift card so I put in my rarely used Hollywood Video card. You get the idea.

And finally, here's a picture of the actual stamp set. Did I mention it's only $14.95? Love it.

More Dasher!

Just kidding! After finishing the last post I decided we needed just a little more Dasher in our lives...so here he is! I made this cute box using the instructions for an A2 box on splitcoast. Here is the link:
http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/resources/tutorials/a2cardbox/

And then I filled the box with matching cards and envelopes that all use shimmer paints, Chrismas Cocoa d.s.p., Dasher, Snow Swirled, and coordinating colors and ribbons. What a great gift right. Right?

Christmas Stamp Set Countdown, #10...Dasher!

For the next 5 or 6 weeks I'm going to be featuring 10 Christmas stamp sets. In case some of you are still sorting out what you'd like to do for Christmas, I hope this inspires you. For those of you who already have you Christmas sets, wait a while, I bet I'll use it and give you some new ideas.

The first set to be features isn't relly a set at all. Dasher is a stand alone stamp found on the very last page of the catalog for only $8.95. I think the reason he's not sold as a set is because he's just so cool. He'd make Donner and Blitzen look like fools. I can't even imagine how Cupid would look when compared to him.

Here they are, all the cards I could possibly make using the Dasher stamp. Okay, I could have probably made more but I was going a little kooky. As I was working with Dasher, I noticed how well he lends himself to cards rather than tags or other crafty do-dads. I also think he looks great with traditional Christmas colors. I tried him in blue and it just didn't work for me.

You may not see it here but the green card base is textured with the Big Shot Texturz polka dot plate. Trust me, it's cute.

I used:

*Dasher and Many Merry Messages

*Chocolate Chip, Real Red and Old Olive

*Corner rounder and Scallop edge punches

*Big Shot Textures Plate Backgrounds 1

This card has more of a distressed look to it. And between the tearing, wrinkling and ink sponging the edges, I had a LOT of fun making it. Until now I've been a bit iffy about the Soft Suede in-color but paring it with Ruby Red has convinced me its a keeper. Too bad we don't get to keep it huh?

I used:

*Dasher and Snow Swirled

*Ruby Red and Soft Suede

*Stamping sponges, Soft Suede polka dot ribbon

I found inspiration for this card at the following link:

http://www.rubberroomramblings.com/2009/08/dasher-meets-snow-swirled.html

Did I mention I now have a Big Shot? Well I do, and it is BY FAR the best die-cutting system that I've ever used, its just so smooth, light and easy to use. Even if the only die I ever bought was the Top Note die I used for this card, it would still be worth it. That die works with EVERYTHING! Also, you may be noticing I keep using the Snow Swirled set with Dasher? Well, I really think they go well together...I have the feeling that Snow Swirled goes with a lot actually.

I used:

*Dasher and Snow Swirled

*Kraft, Chocolate Chip and Real Red

*Real Red 5/8" Grograin, Slot punch, Top Note bigz die

I found inspiration for this card at the following link:

http://www.instampingmode.com/2009/09/clean-and-simple-meets-christmas.html

Shimmer Paint! Can you see it? Do you LOVE it?

A quick note about using the shimmer paint, its very runnny, stains jeans...and carpet. Use it wisely.

I used two application techniques here, (I mean besides pouring it directly onto my pants) for the snowflakes I used a sponge dauber with paint on it to ink up the stamp then just stamped like normal. This gives a lovely shimmery effect. For Dasher and the little greeting, I first inked my stamp with regular classic ink (Soft Suede) then went over that with a painty dauber. I know it sounds like all the ink would get soaked into the dauber but it works beautifully. You get a nice bold, shimmery image. Perfecto!

Then to add some shimmer to the small peice of Real Red cardstock I used to mat Dasher I simple applied what was left on my dauber to the edges of the paper.

I'd like to also point out how clever I am to use the slit punch closure here. See it?

I used:

*Dasher, Snow Swirled, Teeny Tiny Wishes

*Real Red, Soft Suede, Whisper White

*Christmas Cocoa Specialty Paper

*Champagne Mist Shimmer Paint

*Scallop Punch, Large Oval Punch, Scallop Oval Punch, Slit Punch, White Satin Ribbon, sponge daubers

On this card I used pretty much the exact same shimmer paint applications (see the white on white snowflakes, the shimmery matting of white and the shimmery Dasher?) but on a new card format. This is a fun little trifold. Its finished size is 4 1/4 x 4 1/4" so it still fits in a regular A2 envelope but has a little different charm to it.

To make the card, cut an 8 1/2 x 11" sheet in half longway at 4 1/4", score at 2 1/2" and at 6 3/4" then cut at 9 1/4". Or just do what I do and make it up as you go.
I used:

*Dasher, Snow Swirled

*Real Red and Whisper White

*Frost White Shimmer paint

*Christmas Cocoa Specialty Paper

*Rael Red 5/8" Grograin ribbon, Sponge Daubers

Here's another view.

In case you were dying to see what the paint looks like, or the stamps used...here they are. Sorry I didn't include a pic of my (now) fancy pants.

Sweet Centers

Ok, so I've been working on these for a while now. I used every single stamp in the set to make a project and...I had a blast!
This is a great stamp set that works with little plastic treat cups and the 1 3/4" punch. It is available to purchase until January 4th and you can find it in the Stampin' Up! Holiday Mini catalog.

First up is the ornament. Instead of using candy inside I filled it with some glitter, but I think it would look adorable wit any tiny Christmas candy as well. Its nice and light and will hang on the tree just beautifully. I also used the Snow Swirled stamp set for this and the colors are Real Red and Bashful Blue.

And here are the little valentines. I stamped versamark onto Real Red card stock then embossed it with white embossing powder. This gives it a crisp contrasting look that I really like. Before putting these together I attched the plasic cup with the red hots to a peice of white card stock cut to the same heart shape. That is what you see behind the candy.

Here's the back. I thought a little "to from" would be a nice touch for this. My cutting skills need a little work.

The hot air ballooon is just so fun! If you can't tell, those are mini gummy bears inside. It was hard not to eat them all before I made this. They're so darn cute!

The colors I used are Real Red, Pumpkin Pie, So Saffron and Old Olive. Pretty much what I had that matched the bears.

This flower may be my favorite. I LOVE how the Melon Mambo looks with the Garden Green. You may not be able to see it too well but trust me...you'll be seeing more of that color combo. I also used Crushed Curry. Oh, and the candies are chocolate covered sunflower seeds. Clever huh?

Last but not least are the Halloween treats. The colors here are Pumpkin Pie, Tempting Turqoise, Certainly Celery and Basic Black. I actually copied these from a blog I've been following. http://www.stampinpretty.com/2009/08/ppa5-sweet-and-easy-halloween-treats.html

But the box is all me. Here's a close up of the punched out image from the middle of the stamp. Also adorable.

In case you wanted to see what the set looks like, here it is. Enjoy!