Deceptively Simple

Week 2 of the Christmas Stamp-a-Stacks was very successful today, with my hardworking gang churning through the work to get all ten cards done before we all had to scatter in different directions to collect children from school.

This card proved to be more involved than it looks at first glance:

Stamps:  Sanded Background, Music Notes wheel, Baroque Motifs, Perfect Punches
Paper:  Crumb Cake, Rich Razzleberry, Shimmery White
Ink:  Versamark, Crumb Cake, Old Olive, Rich Razzleberry, Platinum Shimmer Paint
Other:  Adhesive Rhinestones, Stamp-a-Ma-Jig, 11/4 " circle punch, Scallop Circle Punch, Rich Razzleberry grosgrain, Linen Thread, Dimensionals, Sponges

The card took a little while because it involved a little more technique than you might expect.  First, there was the background:  we stamped the Crumb Cake (formerly known as Kraft) layer with the Sanded background in Versamark, which created a subtle texture.  Next we rolled the Music Notes wheel across three times, inked up with Crumb Cake ink.  I'm not entirely sure that my music notes are right way up!
Next, we sponged the edges with Crumb cake ink.  Then came the swirl from Baroque Motifs (a classic stamp set, so versatile) in Old Olive ink.  The next step was a little involved - the ghosting technique done with the SAMJ to ensure the image was slightly offset, stamped with Platinum shimmer paint applied directly to the rubber with a dauber.  Then came the Rich Razzleberry flowers, the Rich Razzleberry ribbon and tag, attached with linen thread.  Oh, and see the white part on the tag?  Shimmer White cardstock (YAY!).  It is lovely in real life.  For a final touch, we added bling in the form of diamontes.

I hadn't realised when I made my sample, that the shimmer paint was VERY messy to work with when you make this card in bulk.  Oops, sorry girls!

For a one layer card, this has a lot of texture and interest, built up with the layers of collage and the "ghosting" effect.  It is also a perfect example of how you can make non-Christmas stamps and non-traditional colours (step away from Green and Red sometimes!) really work for you in a Christmas Card.

I'll show you the second card we did, a little later.

What you missed...

If you missed our Launch Day, you missed a great day out!  Here are the projects we made, in no particular order:

This was designed by the lovely Rebecca O'Gorman, and it uses the NEW  Flower punch, and a new stamp, called For You. 

This one was designed by me, and it uses the new Party This Way set.  

Bec's work again, with the new baby Bundle set and Jumbo Wheel, Baby Tees.  It was a little tricky - it is a suspension card, but heaps of fun.  

Mine again, this time using Artistic Etchings in a collage.  I love the Vintage look this stamp set gives!

Steph's work, using the Polka Dot Embossing folder (we inked up the folder, then ran it through the Big Shot to get this cool polka dot DSP effect!) using the new Contempo Christmas set and matching punch.

If it is pink, it must be Linda's!  This card used the divine Vintage Wallpaper embossing folder, and the Friends Never Fade stamp set.

Linda called this card the "Underbelly" male card, because of the dark colours.  The greeting was heat embossed using black embossing powder, which some people had never tried before.  They were experts after this!

Finally, Steph's pretty card using Printed Petals and the greeting from Party This Way.  The little label the greeting was stamped on is actually made from the scalloped oval punch.  There is a new punch that looks similar called the Modern Label Punch, but our new orders had not arrived in time to use it at the Launch.

Apologies for the photos - left it too late in the day to take them in good light - but as you can see, there was something for everyone!

We had a fun day, at the scenic Virginia Golf Club, with door prizes, a raffle and a mega-huge sale of our retired stamps and accessories.   We are planning to have another big day in a few months to tie in with the Summer Mini (which will be here in December I think?), so I'll keep you posted about that.

In the meantime, I have scheduled a class this Thursday - but that will depend on whether my order of new products arrives tomorrow!  If not, we'll move it back a week.  The poor Warehouse people who pack our orders are working overtime trying to keep up with the rush of orders since the new Catty started, so it is taking a little longer than usual for my packages to arrive.

The answer!

LOL at Karen and xxx, I mean Corinna!  Thanks for playing, girls!

Karen was correct!

Here is what I did:

1.  I stamped En Francais with Kiwi Kiss ink onto glossy white cardstock.

2.  When it was dry, I inked up the new Medallion stamp with Versamark, stamped it, and heat embossed with clear embossing powder.

3.  Using my brayer, I then inked over the whole thing with Kiwi Kiss ink until I was satisfied with the depth of colour, and wiped any excess ink away from the medallion with a tissue.  The embossed image resists the ink, hence "emboss resist" technique.  The stamping underneath shows through the clear embossing, which is the "Joseph's Coat" (as in "coat of many colours") technique.  I actually inked up the brayer with Old Olive ink later because when it dried, the Kiwi Kiss didn't look right on the glossy cardstock.

I then assembled the card, using the Sanded background stamp,  sponging, and a rhinestone brad in the centre.

Karen, I'll have to have a think about what to send you as your prize, LOL.

And now here are some more sneak peeks for you:

Isn't this the most girly image you can think of?  My five year old daughter is in Heaven now that we have this.  She is going to a party on the weekend, and this is the perfect card.  If you look closer you can see the glitter.  Notice anything else?  The dark pink cardstock (and ink) is Melon Mambo, which is a current US in colour!  I really thought I would hate it from the way it looked in the catalogue, but in real life, it is lovely - and goes very well with Pretty in Pink.

The next card was made with some scraps I found lying around that seemed to fit together.  The sentiment is a new clear-mount stamp!!!!!  I am completely in love.

Recycling Retired Make & Takes

I was cleaning out my craft lair on the weekend (don't die of shock! I didn't say I finished the job, LOL) and found a lot of old Make and Take packets from the past 12 months of classes, workshops etc. A Make and Take packet is a paper bag filled with cardstock and ribbon etc cut and prepared for someone to make a card in a workshop or class environment. I found a dozen I'd made for a workshop I did during Sale-A- Bration in the beginning of the year - I massively over-prepared. I decided to make up the cards for my own personal use throughout the year, as my store of cards has somewhat depleted.

I particularly thought I'd make some sympathy cards because when there is a crisis, the last thing you want to do is think about a card to make, yet it is so very appreciated by the recipient.

Because I'm a Gemini, I get bored easily if I'm doing a repetitive task. I challenged myself to make each card slightly different while using the same prepared cardstock and colours in all of them. Please note that the cards were made with Groovy Guava, Chocolate Chip and Very Vanilla. Groovy Guava is retired, and no longer available for purchase. I really love this combination, which is funny because I HATED Groovy Guava when I first saw it, and didn't even purchase any until it had less than six months to go.

Anyway, the main theme here is that even if you use exactly the same colours and sizes of cardstock, you can get completely different cards. Try it yourself sometime!

The ingredients are as follows (all Stampin' Up! unless otherwise stated):

Stamps: Polka Dot BG, Sanded BG, En Francais BG, Organic Grace, Echoes of Kindness, Garden Whimsey, Best Yet, Really Retro, Sincere Salutations

Paper: Groovy Guava (retired), Chocolate Chip, Very Vanilla

Ink: Groovy Guava (retired), Chocolate Chip, Versamark

Other: Groovy Guava ribbon (retired), Eyelet Border Punch, Scallop Oval Punch, Large Oval Punch, Sponges, Felt flowers, buttons, twine, half pearls, clear embossing powder, heat gun, pewter brads, large chocolate chip brads