Aug 26, 2018 | cards, Stampin' Up!
It’s time for another Sunday Swap Card Share! This time – Baby Shower Wishes! Lisa Hardie created this pretty card featuring the Wonderful Moments photopolymer set from Stampin’ Up! The background papers are from the Twinkle Twinkle Designer Series Paper – I love the soft effect echoed in the coordinating images stamped onto the card as well. The Stitched Shaped Framelits are one of my favourite ways to cut out an image or sentiment, and the doily softens the edges a bit more.
Can’t find that particular doily in the catalogue? It’s one of the Colo(u)red Doilies from the Annual Catalogue! The reverse side is white – so if you have a project like this Baby Shower Wishes card and don’t have enough of a certain colour, or want to use a different colour scheme than dictated by the doilies themselves, you have options!
If you follow the YamStamps Instagram feed you’ll have seen the castoffs of my mass card production a few days ago – because I was completing my contribution to the latest demonstrator card swap – featuring products from the upcoming Holiday Catalogue! I’m looking forward to seeing everyone’s great work, and to sharing the inspiration and ideas with you – either through the internet or in a class! I did have to work hard to focus on the projects, since we are right in the middle of the chaos that is getting ready to send my son to his first year of university. Lots of changes on the near horizon, and I’m so glad that I have my Stampin’ Up! friends to see me through the next while! Nothing like a little crafty distraction to get through the empty nest feeling….and nothing like a little “side hustle” career to help make ends meet while helping with post secondary education costs!! If you’re interested in finding out more about being a Stampin’ Up! demonstrator, please join me at my Information Evening – you can join in person or online – just RSVP and I’ll give you directions to connect. Wednesday, September 12th – 7pm – Burlington ON or online. You can also get some answers to FAQs on my info page here. Hope to chat with you soon!
Aug 23, 2018 | cards, Christmas, specials, Stampin' Up!
The Blended Seasons stamp set and Stitched Seasons framelits are only available in August from Stampin’ Up! – have you grabbed these special products yet? The specially priced bundle (with your choice of wood mount or clear mount stamps) will see you through a number of seasons! Paired with the Watercolour Pencils (assortment 2), another special item for August, you can create so many great cards! Here’s a recent class card featuring these products – plus a sneak peek at an upcoming special product (can you spot it?)
I love the stitched look on these Stitched Seasons framelits – and the fun thing is that there’s stitching on both sides of the cut edge. While this card only uses the positive portion of the die cut, the remainder of the cardstock also had a stitched look finished edge around the cut out negative portion, which could be used on another project, or could be a design feature in a project (I’ll share an example of this in the next YamStamps newsletter on Tuesday). The Blended Seasons set (which is available in red rubber wood mount or red rubber clear mount) was stamped in StazOn ink and coloured with the Watercolour Pencils Assortment 2. I added the colour directly to the image with the pencils, then blended the shading and colouring with a Blender Pen. This is a way to get a watercolour look while still maintaining a lot of control over the colour movement (which I know some crafters prefer…). This card is all on Shimmery White cardstock, which stands up to a bit of work with water or blender pens, and has a beautiful subtle shine (so subtle, I bet you can’t really see it in the photo….but trust me it’s there!)
As for the sneak peek on this Blended Seasons card….it’s the patterned paper! The Dashing Away Designer Series Paper is a set of 12 sheets of 12″ x 12″ double sided patterned paper, with 6 different designs in total. Some patterns are definitely screaming “Christmas!!” while others, like the one above, could be used for any time of year. This exclusive paper will be available for FREE with qualified orders in September. Hosts of classes or parties with sales of $350 or more will get a package of this paper for free. If you’re keen to get your hands on some of this Designer Series Paper, please contact me ASAP to book a date for a class. You can have an in person class with your friends, or do a catalogue or online party instead – again, contact me for details and to set it up.
Registration is also open for the September Monthly Card Class, happening September 5th at 1pm or 7pm. Contact me to register, or click on the link on the YamStamps Events Page. As per tradition around this time of year, we’ll be having at least one Christmas/Holiday card included in the four cards we create in each monthly card class. If you want all holiday cards, come to the September Christmas Card Class – this time the class will be featuring some fun accents from the Holiday Catalogue! We’re splitting the date this month – Wednesday, September 19th at 1pm or Thursday, September 20th at 7pm. Hope to see you in a class very soon.
Aug 19, 2018 | cards, Stampin' Up!
Time for another Sunday Swap share – this time, it’s a gorgeous Gatefold Card! This card was created by Chris Carmichael. It features the Botanical Tags Thinlits Dies and the Botanical Bliss stamp set – which is available in red rubber wood mount or red rubber clear mount. The stamp set and dies are also available together in either a wood mount bundle or clear mount bundle.
This card opens in the centre – the sides swing open like a gate…and is held closed by sliding the yellow tab underneath the circle held in place by a brad.
When you have a dark card, it’s great to put a lighter coloured insert inside so that you can write on the inside – in case you don’t have a White Stampin’ Chalk Marker on hand, or want more options! This card also uses the Share What You Love Specialty Designer Series Paper, and the pieces are small enough that you could use scraps – or the cut outs from your Scrapbook in a Box?!
If you’re looking for more creative or “different” folds like this gatefold card consider the Clever Cards Online Class! It features 5 different fancier fold cards – Z fold, curved strip, rotating image, hidden message, and twisting pop up – and you’ll get lifetime access to the class materials. (HINT: if you sign up for the YamStamps mailing list, follow the process all the way through to see a special offer for this class only!). As always, if you have any questions, please feel free to contact me. Hope you’ll join me in class!
Aug 15, 2018 | cards, Stampin' Up!
I know that around here, at this time of the summer (because it IS still summer!) many people start thinking about autumn. While I love back to school supply shopping (I have a thing for paper, what can I say?), I definitely don’t want to rush the season. So – here’s a Painted Harvest non autumn card!! Stampin’ Up!’s Painted Harvest stamp set definitely reminds me of autumn, but by changing the colours, you can switch it up. While I chose to use Highland Heather (because I’m really liking that new colour), I can totally see using Crushed Curry and Cajun Craze or Soft Suede to create a sunflower effect….
I also used the Stitched Labels Framelits Dies for the sentiment and to add a little texture on the backing panel. Painted Harvest is a two step stamp set, so there are two images stamped on top of each other to create a more dimensional look. While you can mix and match ink colours, I like to keep things simple and just use the same colour ink. Two layers of the same ink colour make a deeper shade, and not too much thinking for me – yay!
My in person card classes are a great way to try out new tools and techniques for card making – you can take stamps and other Stampin’ Up! products for a test drive (so to speak), build up your stash of handmade cards, and learn some new techniques and tricks to make your card making easier! I specialize in “lazy crafting” – it needs to be fairly easy but with impressive results – and those are the types of cards that I share in classes. Starting in September, each Monthly Card Class will include one Christmas card – because it’s time to start building up those holiday card ideas! If you’re close to Burlington ON, please message me to reserve a spot in September’s class – Wednesday, September 5th at 1pm or 7pm. Class fee of $20 covers all class supplies required. Not close to Burlington or can’t make that day? You can contact me to book a private class with your friends, or try one of my Online Classes – the latest one is the Under the Mistletoe Class – details for this one at yamstamps.com/mistletoe . Hope you’ll join me in class soon!
Aug 12, 2018 | cards, Stampin' Up!
Happy Sunday! I have another Swap Share for you today – this Dream Big Card. Since I am getting my son (and myself) prepared for university, I am feeling a little sentimental about this sentiment!
The Dream Big Card was created by Zahra Premji and I love the soft effect of the colour scheme and design. If you look at the background cardstock, the texture achieved is from the Subtle Dynamic Textured Embossing Folder, new in the Annual Catalogue. I know that it’s actually kind of hard to see in the catalogue – so this card shows you. It gives kind of a linen-textured effect to the cardstock – so very versatile! Just remember – when you are using one of the DYNAMIC embossing folders, they are more thick than regular embossing folders, so when you run it through your Big Shot, you’ll use your standard platform with no adaptor plate (or open, if you have an older one with the tabs on it), and then place the embossing folder (with the cardstock inside) directly onto it, and just use ONE cutting pad on top of the folder.
This card features the Follow Your Dreams stamp set, which is available in red rubber wood mount or red rubber clear mount options. There is also a coordinating set of framelits, called Chase Your Dreams. You can get a discounted bundle with the stamps and framelits (wood mount bundle or clear mount bundle options) as well – and create your own version of a Dream Big card!
If you are looking for card making inspiration and ideas, be sure to be signed up for the YamStamps newsletter – you can use the sign up box at the top right of the blog, or click here. Weekly newsletters go out each Tuesday, and new subscribers also receive a free video tutorial! As always, please contact me if you have any questions.
Aug 9, 2018 | cards, Christmas, online class, Stampin' Up!
Remember that office supply store commercial that ran around this time of year proclaiming “It’s the most wonderful time of the year!”?! I used that song as inspiration when I was designing cards for the July Christmas Card Class – which is now available as an Online Christmas Card Class. If you aren’t close to Burlington ON and can’t attend in person, this is the next best thing! Get all four designs, the full supply list and step by step instructions, plus lifetime access and support. I’ll also be doing Facebook Live videos in the group to show the construction of each card.
I did a Facebook Live video earlier this week showing how to create this bonus design – it’s a “cheater” Iris fold card. You can see the video on the YamStamps Facebook Page, or try this link which should go directly to the video. If you “like” the YamStamps Facebook page, you’ll get notifications the next time I do a live video! The Online Christmas Card Class features four different designs using the Under the Mistletoe Designer Series Paper – but you could technically use any Designer Series Paper I suppose! To get more information about the class and purchase lifetime access, please visit www.yamstamps.com/mistletoe
If you are local to Burlington ON and want to try a class in person, the next Christmas Card Class will be Wednesday, August 22 at 1pm or 7pm. Please contact me to register. Cost is $20 and includes all supplies required to create 4 different cards using the new set of Watercolour Pencils available this month from Stampin’ Up! Registration deadline is Monday, August 20. The deadline has already passed to get a set of pencils included with your class (The “deluxe” class fee of $40) – but if you like you can either place an order at the class itself, or pay the express shipping surcharge to be sure that your pencils arrive before class. And yes, this class will be turned into the next Online Christmas Card Class – so if you can’t make it in person, watch for the announcement about the online version. Hope to see you in class (in person or “virtually”) – soon!
