Even a Teenage Boy…

Sometimes I feel like such a schmuck! My poor son, Brady, needed a Thank You card to send to his trumpet professor. Unfortunately this happens to be an extremely hectic time of the year for me. Those of you who are teachers know exactly what I mean. I have requisitions to make out, lesson plans to complete, course manuals to get in order, semester exams to write and the list goes on and on and on. So I pointed him in the direction of all of my card making supplies and said…”You are a big boy…Go for it!” Well, to make a long story short, he grabbed the “Clearly Thanks” Window Sheets and a packet of In-Colors and came up with this card. I guess the motto of this story would be: “Window Sheets…So Easy, Even a Teenage Boy Can Use Them!” In his own words, (with my translation in parentheses) here is Brady’s step-by-step recipe for this card:

  • Take some blue paper and make it into a card. (Make a standard card base out of Pacific Point.)

  • Take some green paper and cut it so its right under the “Y” in “You” and right below the “swirly” things. (Using Kiwi Kiss, cut a strip of paper so it accentuates the swirls of the window sheet. Adhere to the card base.)

  • Take some orange paper and put it below the green paper. (Take a strip of Tangerine Tango and adhere it to the bottom of the card base as noted in the picture.)

  • Attach the “clear thing” with sticky dots. (Using Mini Glue Dots, position and adhere the window sheet onto the card base.) I did have to advise him that Mini Glue Dots were the best choice for adhering the window sheet.

  • Add some buttons to hide the sticky dots. (If you wish, you can camouflage the Mini Glue Dots with buttons from the Fresh Favorites II Collection. Mini Glue Dots will hold them perfectly in place). I did tell Brady to use a snippet of Pacific Point paper as “thread” in the button. However, he couldn’t manage this very well. His “trumpet” fingers are really calloused, so I did it for him 🙂

  • Stick another button on it by one of the “swirly things.” (Add another button to accentuate the swirls in the design.)

From fresh young minds, you can learn a thing or two! I probably would not have thought about using the three different colors to accentuate the design. In fact, I probably would not have selected these three colors. I asked him what was behind his choices, and he just wanted something bright and “summery”!

When I asked Brady if he was ready to make some more cards, his answer was “No!” But, he was ready to tackle the Big Shot. It seems that he is fascinated by the little matchboxes… Or is he just interested in the chocolate that I put in them?
Stay tuned. Is it possible that there could be a sequel…”Window Sheets…So Easy, Even a Husband Can Use Them”? Time will tell.
Click here to access the Occasions Mini Catalog!
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Card Stock: Pacific Point (111350), Tangerine Tango (111349), Kiwi Kiss (111353)
Other: Clearly Thanks Window Sheets (Occasions Mini 115122), Fresh Favorites II Buttons (107422)

Swing into Fall

The third card in my Branch Out stamp set series features the colors of fall. Really Rust, Always Artichoke, and Chocolate Chip set the tone. The tree, in all of its autumnal glory, takes center stage in this easy to make card.
  • Ink the Branch Out tree with Chocolate Chip and stamp onto Very Vanilla. Double mat onto Really Rust and Always Artichoke.
  • Ink the leaves stamp with More Mustard and randomly stamp. Follow with Really Rust and a smidge of Ruby Red.
  • Ink the Tire Swing with Basic Black (tire) and Chocolate Chip (rope), and using the Stamp-a-ma-jig for perfect placement, stamp it onto the branch of your choice.
  • Add Chocolate Chip 5/8″ Grosgrain Ribbon as illustrated in the photo.
  • Place and adhere the matted tree onto the Very Vanilla card base.
  • Place three Chocolate Chip Corduroy Buttons above the ribbon.
  • Use the paper piercing tool and template from the Crafters Tool Kit to add visual interest just below the ribbon.

Click here to access the Occasions Mini Catalog!

Order Your Stampin’ Up! Supplies Now!
Stamp Sets: Branch Out (113200)

Inks: Chocolate Chip (100908), More Mustard (103162), Really Rust (102549), Ruby Red (102259), Basic Black (101179)
Card Stock: Very Vanilla (101650), Really Rust (100661), Always Artichoke (105119)
Tools: Stamp-a-ma-jig (101049), Crafters Tool Kit (104310)Embellishments: Chocolate Chip Corduroy Buttons (114339), Chocolate Chip 5/8″ Grosgrain Ribbon (109051)

Hello, Little Baby

From the moment I laid eyes on the “Forest Friends” stamp set, I knew that I had to have it! Its fawn image is Bambi personified, and is just perfect to use on cards for little ones. This particular card was created for the Pretty Pals Challenge #31, which combined the Our Creative Corner sketch with a inspiration photo. Double matting the image makes it the perfect focal point for this “deer” little card!
  • Prepare a card base from Barely Banana and layer with dotted Certainly Celery Designer Series Paper.
  • Cut two strips of Bashful Blue Textured Card Stock and mat onto Whisper White. Wrap the horizontal strip with Regal Rose ribbon. Adhere to the card base as illustrated.

  • Using Nestabilities Oval dies and the Big Shot, cut three concentric ovals…a larger and a smaller out of Whisper White, and a middle sized one out of Barely Banana.

  • Ink the “Bambi” stamp with Regal Rose and stamp onto the small sized Whisper White oval. Tip: I used the Stamp-a-ma-jig for perfect placement. Using a Sponge Dauber and Regal Rose Stampin‘ Pastels, shade the edge of the oval.

  • Layer these ovals with Stampin‘ Dimensionals and place on the card with SNAIL Adhesive.
  • Ink the “Hello little baby” sentiment from the Sweet Little Sentiments Hostess Set with Regal Rose and stamp onto Whisper White. Punch it out using the Large Oval Punch and layer onto a Regal Rose scalloped oval, which was punched out with the Scallop Oval Punch. Tip: A Stampin‘ Dimensional can be used to pop the sentiment off of the base oval for added depth.

  • Adhere the sentiment into position with SNAIL Adhesive.

  • Using the Trio Flower Punch, punch two little flowers out of Whisper White. Add Rose Red Brads into the center of each, and place into position with Mini Glue Dots. Tip: Since I added the flowers after I adhered the Bashful Blue strip into place, I simply used scissors to clip the ends of the brads so that they did not “peek” out beneath the flowers.
This particular card was made with a baby girl in mind. By switching colors, you can create a card fit for a little prince! Since paper and color often set the mood, I make sure that I always have a varied supply of paper on hand. This is why I was so excited about the “Buy Three—Get One Free” promotion. It allowed me to stock up on Designer Papers and 12″ x 12″ Textured Card Stock. In fact…I may go back for “seconds”!

Click here to access the Occasions Mini Catalog!
Order Your Stampin’ Up! Supplies Now!
Stamp Sets: Forest Friends (Occasions Mini 113748), Sweet Little Sentiments Hostess Level I (113690)
Ink: Regal Rose (105211), Stampin’ Pastels (105542)
Card Stock: Barely Banana (102701), Whisper White (100730), Regal Rose (105130), Bashful Blue Textured (Soft Subtles 12″ x 12″ Textured Card Stock (108695)
Designer Series Paper: Certainly Celery (112154)
Tools: Scallop Oval Punch (Occasions Mini 114889), Trio Flower Punch (109183), Large Oval Punch (107305), Stamp-a-ma-jig (101049), Sponge Daubers (102892), Nestabilities Ovals (Non-SU!)
Embellishments: Rich Regals Brads (106953), Regal Rose 5/8” Grosgrain Ribbon (109056)