Stamp with Elissa

Scrapbooking: Baby Yoga

I had TONS of trouble getting this page the way I wanted it, but I think I'm finally happy with the results.  The circles give the feel of fun & movement, which is what Charlotte was all about when I took these photos.  Gotta love those chubby legs!

Supply List (all by Stampin' Up!):

• Stamps:  Big Deal Alphabet, Just B, Doodle This
• Ink:  Whisper White & Regal Rose Craft Ink; Night of Navy Classic Ink
• Paper:  Night of Navy, Brushed Metallic Silver, Pretty In Pink, & Whisper White Card Stock
• Tools & Accessories:  Coluzzle, White Gel Pen

I am definitely in the mood for scrapbooking, so I'm hoping I can keep up the momentum and do several more pages as the week goes along.  If you like what you see, please consider booking a scrapbooking workshop with me so that you can join in the fun!

New Video Available on My Demonstrator Business Website

Stampin' Up! is constantly surprising us Demonstrators with cool new products, website features, and training tools.  Today, they've announced that they'll be producing a monthly video demonstration that will automatically be posted to my Demonstrator Business Website (DBWS) at the bottom left corner of the page.  Each month will feature a new stamping project to get your creative juices flowing!

This month's video features a cute (err...I mean "scary") Halloween card made with the "Just Jawing" stamp set ($25.95 US) from our Catalog Sampler.  If the video inspires you to get stamping, you can even click on the "Shop Now" button at the top right corner of my DBWS to order all of the supplies & have them shipped right to you!

I'd love to hear what you think about this new feature, so please check out the video and then let me know your thoughts.

Masculine Card: Noble Deer

Here's another preview of a project I'll be demonstrating at my Fond Farewell Workshop this Saturday.  I wanted a more masculine feel for this one, so I went with my old standby, Noble Deer. 

(Directions Added 6/28/08):  I used the Print Pattern background stamp to create the diamond design on Purely Pomegranate card stock, and I dyed my Twill Tape by running it across a Close to Cocoa ink pad several times. 

The focal point for this card was created by first stamping the deer image onto Naturals Ivory card stock using Basic Brown ink.  Then I used the Coluzzle circle template (4th ring from the outside) to cut out the image.  I colored the image using my Stampin' Pastels, then cut out the mat from Not Quite Navy card stock using the 3rd ring from the outside on the Coluzzle. The whole thing was mounted using Stampin' Dimensionals to really make it "pop" off the page.

Here's the full supply list:
Stamps:  Noble Deer (retiring in August), Print Pattern (retiring)
Ink:  Purely Pomegranate (retiring), Basic Brown, Close to Cocoa
Paper:  Naturals Ivory, Purely Pomegranate (retiring), Not Quite Navy
Tools & Accessories:  Coluzzle, Stampin' Pastels, Stampin' Dimensionals, Twill Tape

Makeover Monday: Baby Bib Card

Fellow blogger Andrea Walford runs a Makeover Monday Challenge, where the goal is to take a project made with non-Stampin' Up! materials and recreate it using nothing but our fabulous Stampin' Up! products.  This week, I found my inspiration in a baby bib card at the "Thinking Inking" blog.

To make my version of the baby bib card, I started with an 8-1/2" x 4-1/4" piece of Berry Bliss DSP, which I folded in half to make a 4-1/4" square.  Then I used the largest oval on my coluzzle template to make the basic oval shape for the card.  (Arrange the template so that most of the fold in the card base remains uncut.)

Next, I used my corner rounder punch to create the scalloped edge around the card.  (Just remove the corner edge guide so that you can line the punch up parallel to the edge of the paper.)  After that, I simply cut a piece of Pretty in Pink card stock using the 3rd largest oval on the coluzzle template.

The rest of the stamping & embellishment is pretty self-explanatory, but feel free to email me if you have questions.  Here's the full supply list... 

• Stamps:  Just B
• Ink:  Close to Cocoa Classic Ink & Regal Rose Craft Ink
• Paper: Berry Bliss DSP (Retiring in August), Pretty in Pink card stock
• Tools & Accessories: Coluzzle, Corner Rounder Punch, Regal Rose 5/8" grosgrain ribbon, Neutrals buttons

If you use this post as inspiration for your own stamping, please post a comment with a link to your new creation.  I'd love to see how this bib card would look with different stamp sets or papers.

Happy Stamping!

Scrapbooking Sunday: Got Milk?

Breastfeeding has been an integral part of my mothering experience with Charlotte, and I wanted a page in her scrapbook to document that.  This page has a photo of our very first nursing session, along with journaling about my commitment to breastfeeding.  This is an especially personal page for me, so please be gentle with your comments  :-)

As far as the actual page design goes, I used an assortment of stamp sets along with the "Special Delivery Girl" Simply Scrappin' Kit.  The page title was done using Whimsical Alphabet Lower, which is still my all-time favorite alphabet even though it's retired.  The "got milk?" embellishment uses Whimsical Alphabet again, along with Office Accoutrement for the brackets and Unfrogettable for the "got" and the "?".  (I inked the stamps with a marker to get the parts that I wanted while omitting the rest.)  And last but not least, the journaling lines come from another retired stamp set called Journaling Fun.

Here's the full supply list...

• Stamps:  Whimsical Alphabet Lower (retired), Office Accoutrement, Unfrogettable, & Journaling Fun (retired).
• Ink: Cameo Coral & Basic Brown ink pads; Cameo Coral & Close to Cocoa markers.
• Paper:  "Special Delivery Girl" Simply Scrappin' Kit; Apricot Appeal, Cameo Coral, Wild Wasabi, & Confetti White card stock.
• Tools & Accessories: Coluzzle.

Happy Birthday Scalloped-Edge Notecard

I have once again been inspired by Andrea Walford!  She posted a fabulous tutorial on her blog last week about making 3x3" scalloped-edge notecards using Designer Series Paper and two of our Stampin' Up! punches.  (You can view the tutorial here.) 

Besides using different paper and stamps, I also changed my version slightly to include the scallop circle punch and eliminate the ribbon.  I did this mostly because I got lazy and it was quicker to punch out a scallop circle than to cut another circle with my coluzzle! 

Supplies Used:

• Stamps:  It's Your Birthday (Retiring in August)
• Ink:  Purely Pomegranate (Retiring)
• Paper: Purely Pomegranate (Retiring) & Pretty in Pink card stock; Berry Bliss Designer Series Paper (Retiring)
• Tools & Accessories:  Scallop Circle Punch & 1-3/8" Circle Punch; Coluzzle.

You many notice from the supply list that many of the products I used will be retiring on August 10th.  If you love them and can't live without them, please call or email me to place your order ASAP! 

Happy Stamping!

Daddy Love

Father's Day is less than two weeks away, so it's time to pull out your stamps and make a great card for your favorite Daddy!  Lucky for you, my husband doesn't read my blog, so I can post my card early for your enjoyment and inspiration...

Supplies Used:

• Stamps:  Big Deal Alphabet, Word by Word background
• Card Stock:  Kraft, Real Red, Brilliant Blue, & Naturals White
• Ink:  Real Red Classic Ink & Real Red Marker
• Tools:  Coluzzle Cutting System Starter Set, Small Oval Punch, Paper Snips, Stampin' Dimensionals
• Embellishments:  Hodgepodge Hardware

I used the largest oval on the Coluzzle to cut the flap from the kraft card stock, being careful to overlap the fold of the card so that my flap would stay attached.  I lined the inside of the card with a sheet of 8-1/4" x 5-1/4" red card stock, then hand-trimmed the flap to let some of the red show through from underneath.  The blue layer was made using the second-largest oval from the Coluzzle template, and the letters in "daddy" were hand-trimmed using the paper snips.   The "love" was markered & stamped from the Word By Word background stamp, then cut out with the small oval punch & mounted inside of the Hodgepodge Hardware oval frame.

My favorite part of this card is underneath the flap, where I've hidden a photo of my husband with my daughter.  (Aren't they just too cute together?!)  This card is designed to double as a photo frame, so my husband can stand this on his desk at work and show it off for the rest of the year!

I won't show you the inside of the card, because it's full of mushy emotional stuff about how great a daddy my husband is, but...

Feel free to "CASE" this card for your own use, or simply pull out your stamps & find your own muse.  Either way, have fun stamping a true "work of heart" for your husband or daddy this Father's Day!